Khodorkovsky & Lebedev Communications Center

Alexei Bayer, a New York-based economist, says that today's Russia is a "kleptocracy," run for the benefit of bureaucrats who want to enjoy access to the affluence of the West. But, he writes in the Moscow Times, a government that has transformed into an oil-fueled kleptocracy - while not a genuine foe like the old Soviet Union - can not be a reliable partner.