Boris Yeltsin — "I am not a democrat by birth, but I have become one."
I am not a democrat by birth, but I have become one.
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More from Boris Yeltsin
"Russia will not be a superpower again. That is an illusion."
"I believe in Russia. I believe in its future."
"I believe in a better future for Russia."
"A man must live like a great brilliant flame and burn as brightly as he can. In the end he burns out. But this is far better than a mean little flame."
"I am tired of being president."
About Boris Yeltsin (1931-2007)
First president of post-Soviet Russia (1991-1999), who climbed atop a tank to defy the August 1991 coup and oversaw the chaotic privatization of the 1990s. Closely associated with Mikhail Gorbachev (his predecessor and rival reformer). For an intellectual contrast, see Gennady Zyuganov, Russian Communist Party leader — Zyuganov came within 3 percentage points of beating the ailing Yeltsin in the 1996 presidential runoff — the closest free election Russia has had, and arguably the moment that decided whether Russia would reverse to communism or continue down the path that led to Putin.