RUSSIAN MINISTER PREDICTS FINANCIAL BACKLASH IF COMMUNISTS WIN.

Russian economics minister Yevgeny Yasin says he doubts whether the IMF or the World Bank will continue to grant credits to Russia if Communist party leader Gennady Zyuganov wins next month’s presidential elections. Commenting on Zyuganov’s economic program, which was made public at the beginning of this week, Yasin said "it draws a veil over the real wishes that the Communists will try to make come true." He predicted that a Communist government would sharply increase state intervention in the economy and try to renationalize key industries. This would further increase the risk of investing in the Russian economy at a time when, Yasin said, investment is what the economy needs most of all. Yasin said, too, that in his view Zyuganov’s economic program would be bound to prove inflationary. "The Communists will have to find money to meet their promise to make everyone’s life better," he said. (Interfax, May 29)

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