Russia: Shock (and Awe) Therapy for Iraq? The U.S. interim administration in Iraq chooses Yegor Gaidar, Russia’s “shock therapist,” as an advisor.
ULYANOVSK, Russia--Could Yegor Gaidar, the mastermind of the “shock therapy” applied to Russia’s economy in the 1990s, be called to do the same job in Iraq? In a country where 33 million live below the poverty line, the revelation that Gaidar, who many believe played a major role in their impoverishment, has been invited to talk with U.S. officials in Baghdad has come as a shock and caused widespread anger.
It has also become a source of black humor. A joke now doing the rounds is that the Americans may have pledged not to unleash weapons of mass destruction in Iraq but they are now inviting one: Gaidar.
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