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World: West Remembers Yeltsin As An Historic Figure

By Andrew Tully

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- The passing of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin is being felt most deeply in Russia and the other former Soviet nations, but the memory of this forceful leader is also strong in the United States and Europe.

Western leaders are remembering him as a man who boldly took his place on the world stage during times of great uncertainty and turmoil. (Read Yeltsin's obituary)

In Washington, U.S. President George W. Bush expressed both sadness and awe at Yeltsin's passing. And he praised the Russian's leadership at what he called "a time of momentous change" for the world.

"Laura (Mrs. Bush) and I are deeply saddened by the death of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin," Bush said through a spokeswoman.

"President Yeltsin was an historic figure who served his country during a time of momentous change. He played a key role as the Soviet Union dissolved, helped lay the foundations of freedom in Russia and became the first democratically elected leader in that country's history," the U.S. president said.

"I appreciate the efforts that President Yeltsin made to build a strong relationship between Russia and the United States. We offer our sincerest condolences to the Yeltsin family and to the Russian people."

A Demand For Democracy

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates was in Moscow when the news of Yeltsin's death was announced today. He recalled the day Yeltsin defiantly climbed onto a Soviet tank in Moscow in 1991 during the attempted coup of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Gates said no American who saw that event will ever forget it.

Javier Solana, the foreign policy and security chief of the European Union, also recalled Yeltsin's behavior during the coup, which ended with Gorbachev being restored to office.

Solana spoke about his memories of Yeltsin during a news conference today in Luxembourg.

"I had the opportunity of meeting President Yeltsin during his long period of tenure on many, many occasions, and I would like to remember two [such occasions] that for me were very fundamental in my political life," Solana said.

"One was the summer of 1991, in which you remember very well the role that he played (in opposing the coup against Gorbachev), and the second was in 1997 when I signed with him the first agreement between the Russian Federation and NATO."

Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the EU's external affairs commissioner, was also with Solana in Luxembourg. She recalled Yeltsin’s demand that Russia adopt democracy and the market economy.

"He will always be remembered by us for his, I would say, lasting legacy, for the development of democracy and also market economy in Russia," she said.

Russians themselves will have an opportunity to remember Yeltsin at his funeral on April 25, which President Vladimir Putin has declared a day of national mourning.

The Kremlin said Yeltsin will be buried in Moscow's Novodevichy Cemetery, where many of the leading figures in Russian history are interred.

Copyright (c) 2007. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org