The fiercer battle will be over Chernomyrdin's proposal to peg the ruble to the dollar via a currency board -- everyone from international lenders to the Communist opposition is skeptical. "It's like having 1,000 people in a room with no air, and then throwing in a bottle of oxygen with enough for three or four people and saying work it out among yourselves," says Meier. The Darwinian culling of the banking sector has limited appeal to anyone except Moscow's oligarchs, who hope to salvage some of their wealth. Foreign bankers have little enthusiasm for the plan -- besides doubts over its efficacy, it's a nonstarter without another infusion of Western billions.
Russian Roulette
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MOSCOW: Russia's politicians may reach an agreement on a prime minister, but they're unlikely to agree on an economic policy. Boris Yeltsin has convened a weekend horse-trading session in the hope of securing Viktor Chernomyrdin's election on Monday, after the Duma postponed Friday's vote. "The Communists still insist they'll reject Chernomyrdin, but the tide may be turning as backroom deals have swung some key constituencies," says TIME Moscow correspondent Andrew Meier.