Source: New York, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2000

With the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, Ukraine—the second-most important economic contributor to the union after Russia—unshackled itself from years of subjugation. The newly gained freedom meant rebuilding the country to reflect Ukrainian nationalism. Radical economic reforms were dismissed; such an approach represented Russian rashness. Instead, Ukraine undertook a “gradualist” approach to reform, but the results have been worse.

In Economic Reform in Ukraine, editors Anders Åslund and Georges de Ménil show that despite intents to reform, Ukraine has had one of the worst growth performances in the post-communist world. In the past decade, the country ended up recreating a massive centralized bureaucracy, including mimicking Soviet-style foreign trade regulations.

This comprehensive and policy-oriented study—with contributions from leading reformers in the Ukrainian government and other economic advisers—is the essential guidebook to what Ukraine needs to do to begin solving major problems in macroeconomic stabilization, fiscal policy, the energy sector, privatization, the legal system, and pension reform. Ukrainian policy makers have long been cognizant of reform proposals and have understood the economic issues, the editors argue. It is now time for policy decisions and implementation.

Anders Åslund is a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Georges de Ménil is professor of economics at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris. They served as co-directors of the Soros International Economic Advisory Group to the Ukrainian Government in the mid-1990s.