The Gorbachev Foundation holds a presentation of its new book “In the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee … From the notes of Anatoly Chernyayev, Vadim Medvedev and Georgy Shakhnazarov (1985 – 1991)”

On August 19, 2006, the Gorbachev Foundation held a presentation of the book “In the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee … From the notes of Anatoly Chernyayev, Vadim Medvedev and Georgy Shakhnazarov (1985 – 1991).”

     In his opening remarks, Mikhail Gorbachev said that the book, which brings together the notes that were made in 1985-1991 at the meetings of the Politburo and other closed meetings of the CPSU Central Committee by his close aides, is a unique edition. In the last decade, lots of myths were created about Perestroika, which sometimes are included even into history textbooks. Therefore, documentary testimonies by those who participated in the events at the top levels of power and in “making the policies of Perestroika” are extremely important. The notes of discussions held at the Politburo, which were reproduced in the book, help to create an objective picture of our recent history and convey the atmosphere in which the decisions that changed the country’s fate had been taken. “I think it is very important that people read this book,” Mikhail Gorbachev said.
     Speaking about the work on the book, Anatoly Chernyayev stressed that for him and for all the contributors this effort was not only the creation of a historical document, but it also had a big moral significance: “We wanted to tell the truth.” Vadim Medvedev said that the text of the book is a living document that bears an imprint of personalities of its creators, rather than shorthand notes.
     Member of the Academy Leonid Abalkin shared his impressions, calling the book “a major phenomenon in the modern historical science and an element of Russia’s self-discovery.” Historian Roy Medvedev, who compared the new book to “records recovered from a black box,” said that for the first time in the Soviet history researchers were given a chance to get an insight from documentary materials into the mechanisms of political decision-making by the Soviet leadership. Georgy Razumovsky, who took part in the meetings of the Politburo during the Perestroika period, said that the book gave him a new perspective on the events he had directly participated in. Member of the Academy Aleksandr Nekipelov noted that this historical document reveals many influences that were behind the dramatic events that broke off the process of Perestroika. Political scientist Valery Solovei pointed out to the unique value of the book for the historical science and its importance for future researchers.
     Summing up the discussion, Mikhail Gorbachev shared his view of some of the events described in the book.
     Transcript of the presentation will be posted on the Gorbachev Foundation’s Web site.