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Page 205
motherland. No one dares call them civil wars, but that is what they are.
He glanced at Aleksandr Cherny again. He is a comfortable man, a nonthreatening man, all that a schoolteacher should be, Milstein thought. Was that enough for the head of state at a time of continual crisis? Foreigners liked him, trusted him. But he had done nothing about the thunder on his right. The nationalists underestimated him, regarded him as a weakling, because Cherny never really finished off his opposition. He always softened before the final blow was struck, sought negotiation rather than continued confrontation.
In a strange sort of way, Kondratiev probably would never forgive Cherny for having stopped the buildup of Soyuz strength within his government without killing or imprisoning Kondratiev, as Soyuz's personification. He most probably considered it a personal insult, an indication that Kondratiev was no threat, either to Cherny or to the state.
When we tore down the red banners, Milstein thought, we did not imagine uncertainty would become a way of life for us. It all seemed so clear while we were waiting in the wings. There were times, Milstein feared, when his old friend's reasonableness and willingness to compromise was as dangerous as the conspiracies of men like Kondratiev. Nathan Abramov had been called back from New York by Yevgeny Suvorov on some flimsy excuse and would soon be in Moscow. At least he will meet with the President before he presents himself at the Foreign Ministry. If only I hadn't agreed to go to Ukovo with Aleyev, Milstein thought, I could be there, too, to discuss this with Nathan. He has a very clear understanding of the dangers we face. At Vienna, I did warn Vincent Kellner about Soyuz, but only in the most general terms. I should have been more candid. I shall send Kellner a more explicit message through Nathan, when he returns to New York.
Milstein stumbled slightly as the procession moved across the cobblestones toward the black marble mausoleum. He dreaded the prospect of the hunt at Aleyev's dacha tomorrow.

 
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