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In the murky world of Kremlin power sharing, all distinctions ultimately blur in the Politburo, where military and security issues become tightly intertwined with party politics. A major question is the degree to which Gorbachev alone can make much of an imprint on Soviet foreign and domestic policy. Said President Reagan at a White House lunch for a group of editors and broadcasters: "While an individual, once chosen by them, can undoubtedly influence or persuade them to certain things that might be particular theories or policies of his, the government basically remains the same group of individuals."
Foreign Minister Gromyko emerged from the succession as the most prominent member of the Old Guard. Given Gorbachev's relative inexperience in foreign affairs, it seems likely that Gromyko will continue to guide Kremlin policy toward the outside world. If Gorbachev quickly secures the two other major posts, Chairman of the Defense Council and the largely ceremonial position of Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet--in effect, President--he will have all the outer accoutrements of power. A sharing of these responsibilities would indicate that he still has some way to go to establish himself firmly and fend off all possible Politburo rivals.
Ultimately, Gorbachev will probably set about remaking the ruling elite in his own image. Time and numbers will work to his advantage. Death has shrunk the number of full Politburo members. Gorbachev could make his move at the next party plenum, set for this spring, to advance younger technocrats like Vladimir Dolgikh, 60, the party secretary in charge of heavy industry, and Eduard Shevardnadze, 57, the first secretary of the Georgian Communist Party and an advocate of economic reform; both are nonvoting members of the Politburo. Other possible candidates for promotion include Nikolai Ryzhkov, 55, a former engineer in charge of the Central Committee section for economic planning, and Yegor Ligachev, 64, who holds the key job of supervising personnel changes in the party.
Gorbachev's most pressing task will be to oversee the selection of new members for the 300-plus Central Committee, to be chosen at the 27th Party Congress, which is expected to take place later this year. "He is going to concentrate on getting his people in," says a Western diplomat in Moscow. "This is the Central Committee that will be ratifying Politburo seats for the next five years." If Gorbachev hopes, as he signaled last week, to invigorate the sluggish Soviet economy, he will have to unveil his program as part of the 1986-90 Five-Year Plan, which will be adopted by the Party Congress.