Yeltsin, Boris

President of the Russian republic who criticized the slow pace of Mikhail Gorbachev 's reforms. In 1991, he successfully led the opposition to an attempted coup by communist hard-liners and became the most powerful person in the former Soviet Union . As president, Yeltsin led the Russian republic in its difficult and often chaotic struggle to move away from centralized economic planning, but he was plagued by poor health, conservative opposition, and a lagging economy. He was succeeded by Vladimir Putin .

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Twenty years ago, on December 11th, Chechens heard that Russian President Boris Yeltsin had deployed tanks against them.

Tragic footwork by the likes of George W. Bush, Dmitry Medvedev, and Boris Yeltsin turned the politicians into laughing stocks.

Sure, Putin may ride horses shirtless in Siberia, but could he bust a move like late Russian President Boris Yeltsin?

Only a year later, President Boris Yeltsin forced the exiled couple to leave Moscow within three days.

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