title: Russia after Communism: The Road to Dictatorship and Terror
abstract: Satter investigates how Russia became a dictatorship and aggressor after the fall of the Soviet Union, as it sought to carry out the transition from communism to capitalism without the rule of law. The massive giveaway of state property to a small group of corrupt insiders under Yeltsin impoverished the country and created a devastating social catastrophe. Once elected, Putin began to strengthen the institutions of the state that had barely functioned under Yeltsin through crime and corruption. 
journal: South Central Review