Russia's president and prime minister have offered their condolences to the family of Yegor Gaidar, who died on Wednesday, and praised the liberal reformer's decisive role in creating modern Russia's economy.
Gaidar, a leading figure in Boris Yeltsin's highly controversial economic reforms in the years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, died of an unexpected blood clot at around 03:00 Moscow time (Midnight GMT). He was 53.
Medvedev said in a message to Gaidar's relatives: "An outstanding economist and academic has passed away. A government figure whose name we associate with the decisive steps taken to form the basis of a free market, and the transition of our country to a fundamentally new path of development."
"Yegor Timurovich Gaidar was a brave, honest and determined man. In times of total change, he shouldered responsibility for unpopular but necessary measures. He always firmly followed his convictions, which earned him respect in the eyes of both his associates and opponents. He will be always remembered in our hearts," Medvedev said.
Vladimir Putin also sent his condolences, calling Gaidar's death a major loss for Russia.
"A real citizen and patriot, a strong-spirited, talented academic, writer and practical man, has left us. Not every state official gets the opportunity to serve his country during the crucial stages of its history, to make key decisions which define the future of the country. Yegor Gaidar accomplished this difficult task honorably, displaying the best professional and personal qualities," Putin said.
Gaidar was one of the 'young reformers', along with Anatoly Chubais and Boris Nemtsov, who oversaw the rapid introduction of a free market to Russia in the early 1990s, including mass privatizations and price deregulation.
While the reforms were hugely unpopular among ordinary Russians - causing inflation to skyrocket, wiping out the savings of millions of people, and allowing vast wealth to fall into the hands of a well-connected elite - some argue that the rapid reforms were the only way of averting greater disasters.
His ex-colleague Anatoly Chubais expressed sadness at Gaidar's death, saying: "Russia was tremendously lucky that Gaidar was there in one of the hardest moments of its history. At the beginning of the 1990s, he saved the country from hunger, civil war and collapse. I will feel this loss all my life."
The Soviet Union's last leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, also expressed sadness at Gaidar's death, saying: "In personal terms, I liked him very much, he worked for me as an adviser - an intelligent young man."
However, he questioned Gaidar's legacy, saying he should not have forced through his economic reforms with such speed.
Gaidar was acting prime minister in the second half of 1992, but parliament never confirmed him as premier. He left the government in 1994, and he was elected to serve two terms in the State Duma, in 1993-1995 and 1999-2003.
Gaidar was born March 19, 1956 in Moscow, the son of former Navy admiral and journalist Timur Gaidar and grandson of writer Arkady Gaidar. He is survived by his wife, three sons and daughter.
MOSCOW, December 16 (RIA Novosti)
