Brussels The International Crisis Group is deeply saddened by the loss of our Board member, Yegor Gaidar, former Prime Minister of Russia, who died at his home in Moscow early this morning.

By nature and training, Yegor Gaidar was very much a theoretical economist. Mikhail Gorbachev's perestroika, however, projected him onto centre-stage. In 1992, under the presidency of Boris Yeltsin, Gaidar pushed through the dramatic economic reforms that became known as shock therapy. These continue to divide society between those who feel he took a brave and necessary step, and those who condemn him for damaging the economy. Few, however, would challenge the courage he showed during the chaos of the nineties -- particularly the violent constitutional crisis of 1993 -- or the perspicacity of his political analysis.

In recent years, Gaidar was a firm supporter of Crisis Group in Russia, helping promote our policy recommendations at the highest levels, even when they went against popular and conventional thinking. He provided valuable insights for our research and analysis and also supported the work of our Moscow office in practical ways.

"Yegor Gaidar's death is a tremendous loss both for Russia and for Crisis Group", said Louise Arbour, Crisis Group President. "Our thoughts now go out to his family and other friends who are mourning his passing".

Subscribe to Crisis Group’s Email Updates

Receive the best source of conflict analysis right in your inbox.