Thirty years after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia instils grave concern

COLIN SHINDLER: The great hope that followed the demise of communism has dissolved, and a growing band of unhappy Jews watch as Russia goes from bad to worse

THIRTY YEARS AGO, the Soviet Union passed into history. Mikhail Gorbachev resigned, a new Russia was born and a plethora of new republics came into existence. The abrupt end of 74 years of Lenin's experiment gave birth to chaos and collapse. Oligarchs emerged from the subterranean depths. Diehard commissars became diehard capitalists overnight.

While many made fortunes, the safety net of state provision for ordinary people was removed at one blow. The West subsequently failed to nourish the seeds of democracy and the rule of law during the 1990s. It paved the way for former KGB Lieutenant Colonel Vladimir Putin to offer a crude nationalism and an unapologetic authoritarianism as a potent substitute for economic instability. Putin now has the possibility to remain in power until 2036, when he will be 84.

Within weeks of attaining power in May 2000, Putin moved against the oligarchs — a disproportionate number of whom were Jewish. Some complied, some rebelled and others embraced emigration.  Under communism, ideology provided the bedrock upon which power operated. Today's regime is defined by the accumulation of great wealth without any pretence at upholding legal norms.

Questions about Putin's personal wealth and the machinations of the oligarchs that surround him clearly unnerve the Kremlin. Putin's People, the recent book from the investigative journalist,Catherine Belton, formerly the head of the Financial Times' Moscow Bureau, attempted to shine a spotlight on many a shady corner — and earned five lawsuits from billionaires including Israeli citizens, Roman Abramovich and Mikhail Fridman.

Last week, a preliminary judgement was given in a British courtroom. The judge said Belton’s account of recent events in Russia, as argued by her lawyers in relation to meaning, was “in my view, the right one”. But the judge also said specific sections of the book conveyed a defamatory meaning against Roman Abramovich, including a claim that he had bought Chelsea football club on Vladimir Putin’s orders.