The Rise of Moscow, Inc.
Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov is a potential successor to Boris Yeltsin. But will his urban corporatism solve his country's economic woes?
Moscow at night glitters as never before. The Russian capital--850 years old last year--is vibrantly alive, almost pulsating with energy. To take an evening walk through the Garden Ring boulevards that define the city's center, as I did last fall, is to be in the midst of a vast swarm of Muscovites, scurrying hither and yon. Some are heading for the theaters, others are checking out the latest fancy stores such as Benetton and Galerie Lafayette, still others are just strolling about, pausing now and then in the chill night air to watch one of the various street performers. Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has seen to it that virtually every building facade, every urban surface, is well-scrubbed or freshly painted--and brightly lit. Very brightly. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of spotlights and streetlights have been installed by Luzhkov's government to display the new Moscow to best effect. And the sight is indeed impressive. In its central districts, Moscow can be compared to the downtowns of the great cities of Europe--something that could never have been said truthfully before, at least not since 1913.
Mayor Luzhkov's renovations are not mere blandishments--what the Russians call pokazukha--tacked on to impress the visitors at last year's extravagant ($60 million), three-day celebration of the anniversary of Moscow's founding. His administration has made substantial improvements to the city's infrastructure--its roads, bridges, sewer and water systems, and telecommunications. And, perhaps most significant, the Moscow economy is now sustaining a small but growing middle class, with white-collar Muscovites now working as computer specialists, lawyers, accountants, and secretaries, often for foreign companies. Crime remains a serious problem--kidnappings and assassinations by rival businessmen, in particular, remain common--but official figures indicate that homicides and thefts declined markedly last year. Walking around Moscow last fall, I had much less fear for my safety than I did four or five years ago. If the Russian capital can stay on its present course, it seems bound eventually to take its place among the world's leading cities.