Boris Bribery Scandal? What Else Is New?

Fortunately for Boris Yeltsin, tales of corruption are a big yawn in Moscow. An Italian newspaper on Thursday accused Russia’s president of taking bribes, while USA Today alleges that he presided over a $15 billion money laundering scheme. But the allegations are unlikely to dent Yeltsin’s already negligible popularity. "The Russian people are suffering scandal burnout," says TIME Moscow correspondent Andrew Meier. "Some of these allegations have long been aired in the Russian press — although they’re dismissed by the Kremlin. Charges of corruption at the highest level don’t have much shock value in this country."

Better news for Yeltsin came from his generals, who claimed Wednesday to have routed Islamic separatist rebels in the restive republic of Dagestan. But even though Russian forces have recaptured the villages held by the insurgents, their victory was anything but total. "The rebels had left the villages before the Russians actually recaptured them," says Meier. "In fact, Russian forces spent two days shelling empty villages. The rebels retreated in the face of superior firepower, but they haven’t gone far; this is not over." Indeed, as Russian forces pursuing the retreating rebels bombed villages in neighboring Chechnya Thursday, Moscow risked reopening an even wider conflict.