RICHARD SAKWA Professor of Russian and European Politics at the University of Kent, UK. He has published widely on Soviet and Russian affairs and his research interests focus on problems of democratic development in Russia, the nature of post-communism, and the global challenges facing the former communist countries. ANNE STEVENS Emeritus Professor of European Studies at Aston University, UK. She has a particular interest in the relationship between politics and administration. She is the author of Government and Politics of France (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003) and of Women, Power and Politics (Palgrave Macmillan, 2007).