THE GORBACHEV REVOLUTION - THE ROLE OF THE POLITICAL ELITE IN REGIME DISINTEGRATION

On the basis of personal interviews with 116 members of the political elite of the USSR in its terminal period, conclusions are drawn about influence on political power and reasons for the breakdown of the poli tical system. Unlike democratic transitions grounded on negotiation, t he collapse of the USSR was a consequence of a fragmented and highly d ivided political elite lacking in political and moral cohesion. The dr iving forces of political change came from within the Party leadership which believed the system to be fundamentally flawed whereas other gr oups in the ruling elite considered it to be essentially sound. In the absence of a firm political base for radical reform, foreign Western leaders are shown to have been sought as allies for change. In turn th eir perceived influence exacerbated elite dissension.