ebooks An American Quilt: Unfolding a Story of Family and Slavery by Rachel May in History

Description

The arrest of Mikhail Khodorkovsky; the head of the Yukos oil company; in October 2003; was a key turning point in modern Russian history. Although officially charged with fraud and tax evasion; many speculated that the real catalyst for Khodorkovsky's arrest was his outspoken criticism of President Vladimir Putin's regime. After two controversial trials; attracting widespread international condemnation; Khodorkovsky was sentenced to 14 years in jail. In this book; Richard Sakwa examines the rise and fall of Yukos and considers the relationship between Putin's state and big business during Russia's traumatic shift from the Soviet planned economy to capitalism; as well as Russia's emergence as an energy superpower. The attack on Khodorkovsky had - and continues to have - far-reaching political and economic consequences but it also raises fundamental questions about the quality of freedom in Putin's Russia as well as the world at large.