[PEN-L:133] Yevgeny Primakov

[Rosser Jr, John Barkley]

     The new Premier of Russia, Yevgeny Primakov, has an 
interesting background prior to holding his most recent 
position as Foreign Minister.  Immediately prior to that he 
was head of the SVR, the successor to the KGB's First 
Directorate which deals with foreign affairs.  The SVR's 
headquarters are in a Moscow suburb and the building 
apparently mimics the design of CIA headquarters in 
Langley.  Prior to that he attracted attention when he was 
Gorbachev's special envoy to Saddam Hussein just prior to 
the Gulf War.  He is fluent in Arabic and for many years he 
headed the Oriental Studies Institute.  I have in my office 
a book he wrote in 1981 on Afghanistan when he was in that 
position.  He has also headed IMEMO, the Institute of World 
Economy and International Relations where his son-in-law 
still holds a position as an expert on the Japanese 
economy.  Apparently he did not want the position of 
Premier (who in their right mind would, right now?) but had 
his arm twisted by the Communists among others.
Barkley Rosser

-- 
Rosser Jr, John Barkley
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