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Government response to ecological concerns in the USSR in the Soviet & post-Soviet eras is examined. After years of neglect, ecological concerns emerged as public issues in the USSR only in the final years of the Soviet regime as a result of glasnost & the ensuing increase in public participation in the policy process, reduction in state secrecy, & adoption of less bureaucratic styles of decision making. Changes in the decision-making process resulted in contradictory demands on the system, particularly from the emerging nationalist movements within the country; consequently, little progress in abating environmental concerns was achieved. Upon the dissolution of the USSR, the former Soviet states inherited these environmental problems, but had few resources to combat them. At present the region's economic concerns are receiving the most attention from governmental entities, & environmental concerns have low priority. D. Generoli

Argues that Stalinist regimes failed to achieve legitimacy, failed to develop a genuine sense of community and were an affront to nationalist aspirations. Examines the costs to the Soviets, and the benefits--namely, that there are communist parties in the region now committed to perestroika. (SJK)

Both Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union are locked in domestic battles over the nature and extent of a dramatic reform process that touches on the economic and political foundations of the region. (SJO)

The extent of post-Soviet democratic transformation in Moldovia is analyzed, arguing that the legacy of authoritarianism has hindered the development of democracy. The authority of the National Security Ministry is considered an example of the problematic transition. The ruling Agrarian Democratic Party has prevented fair elections, interfered with the functioning of opposition political parties, restricted the media, & discriminated against clergy & adherents of the Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia. In addition, the right to private property is limited, & peasants have been denied private ownership of their land. In the context of the philosophical foundations of a democratic state, it is concluded that the preconditions for a democratic state do not yet exist in Moldovia. J. Ferrari