"Russia will never catch up"
"We will never catch up," writes Alexey Melnikov, member of the bureau of Russia's liberal opposition party, Yabloko, in Gazeta.ru. "Twenty years of unsuccessful reforms, propaganda lies, theft, corruption, and brain drain have deprived Russia of the possibility to develop and compete with other nations. Our lot is to rot away, selling the only thing that anybody still buys from us: oil and gas," Mr Melnikov laments.
Lengthy visits of Russian officials to the United States usually contribute to if not sensible decisions, then at least to some clarity in the minds of our rulers. The visits serve to remove any thought of Russian economic power and the workability of our crony capitalism, and help understand how backward Russia really is. I wonder, did Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sense anything of the sort on his latest visit to the US? Be it as it may, what ever went through the president's mind and what ever measures he intends to take, is of no consequence. Change will not happen in Russia.
