The Long Road to Freedom is a comprehensive and thorough assessment published so far of glasnost, perhaps the most important term to have entered the international political dictionary in recent years. It explains the origins of glasnost against the background of Russian and Soviet history and shows in fascinating detail how, as the result of the glasnost revelations, our knowledge of the Soviet Union has had to be reconsidered. The book examines the impact of glasnost on Soviet cultural life, the economy, and foreign policy. It discusses the polarization of public opinion, the open debates inside the Soviet Union on burning social problems, and the emergence of a new influential "Russian party." The book also considers likely future trends and developments in a spirit of critical sympathy and in full awareness of the limits of glasnost, the enormous difficulties and possible setbacks likely to face the Soviet reform movement the years to come.