“Plowman from the economy”: colleagues remember the deceased ex-minister Yevgeny Yasin

At the age of 89, Evgeniy Yasin, who was more than an iconic figure in Russian economic science, and more than a statesman in the modern history of the country, died. One of the ideologists of the reforms of the 1990s, a comrade-in-arms of Yegor Gaidar, Minister of Economy in 1994-1997, founder and scientific director of the Higher School of Economics, a teacher who trained more than one generation of prominent professionals, Yasin was, first of all, a person – bright, open, highly decent and principled. His colleagues in the economic workshop shared their memories and impressions of him with MK.

Nikita Maslennikov, leading expert at the Center for Political Technologies:

“I remember Evgeniy Grigorievich from the time when I was a student at the Faculty of Economics of Moscow State University, where he taught seminars on economic statistics. Well, then, in the 1990s, we interacted almost on a daily basis in the government of the Russian Federation, where I was an assistant to the prime minister, and he was the minister of economics, and then minister without portfolio. I am absolutely sure that without Evgeny Grigorievich there would be no modern Russian economy and those people who created it and continue to develop it. Without him, there would be no HSE, whose scientific director he worked for many years. This alone is enough to remain in history forever. And of course, one cannot help but mention his human traits: openness, integrity, unconditional honesty – both professional and human. And, of course, a wonderful sense of humor that did not leave him throughout his life. It was evident that he was born in Odessa. For our professional world, Evgeniy Grigorievich was an absolute moral constant, he will be greatly missed. Being friends with Fazil Iskander, he once asked the writer: “Which profession do you respect most?” “A plowman,” Iskander answered. “Why?” “And because the plowman makes the earth closer to the sun, he raises it.” In a broad sense, Evgeniy Grigorievich was just such a plowman.”

Igor Nikolaev, chief researcher at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences:

“Evgeny Grigorievich personified the liberal direction in economic theory and practice. Someone blames him for this, which, in fact, is completely wrong. After all, liberalism in economics means freedom, freedom of entrepreneurship, first of all. Not permissiveness, but freedom, to which it is pointless to object. And no matter how surprising it may seem to someone, Yasin was a true statesman. In the sense that the interests of the state were not an empty phrase for him. I say this with full responsibility, because I know how critical he was of those same loans-for-shares auctions. His passing is a heavy loss for economic science and the Russian economy as a whole. Evgeny Grigorievich did a lot to make it truly prosperous. He trained a galaxy of talented scientists who, I am sure, absorbed his best qualities and skills.”

Alexey Portansky, professor at the National Research University Higher School of Economics:

“I knew Evgeniy Grigorievich personally and was very proud of this acquaintance. He will definitely leave a very noticeable mark on our history – both as a brilliant economist and as a personality of enormous magnitude. Such human qualities are rarely found among high-ranking officials, which he formally was. Yasin always responded to requests and did so even when he could come up with an excuse. I remember this episode. About eight years ago, I received in Moscow a fairly well-known colleague in the West – the director of the World Trade Institute in Bern. The guest wanted to talk with some of those Russian economists who were directly involved in the reforms of the 1990s. I told Yasin about this and asked to meet. He responded immediately, invited the two of us to the restaurant, paid for lunch, talked with pleasure with the guest, and answered his questions for an hour and a half.”

Sergey Smirnov, leading researcher at INION RAS:

“Evgeniy Grigorievich was an amazingly integral person, while occupying high government positions. Today, another such bright person can no longer be found in such high positions. Yasin showed exceptional decency and goodwill, and his mind was always with him, as they say. Regarding his role in the economic processes of the 1990s, Yasin’s national interests invariably prevailed over personal ones, unlike a number of fellow reformers who were then at the helm. Evgeniy Grigorievich was not involved in any corruption scandal. One of Yasin’s most significant achievements at the time when he left the post of Minister of Economics and headed the Higher School of Economics as a scientific director was the organization of international scientific conferences on problems of economic and social development. These forums were called Yasinsky or April (“April”) forums. Yasin was always open to criticism as a representative of the liberal link in our economic science, but did not change his principles.”

Oleg Buklemishev, director of the Center for Economic Policy Research, Faculty of Economics, Moscow State University:

“I knew Evgeniy Grigorievich from different sides – both as a scientist and as an official. The longest period of our interaction came after he left government service. We mostly encountered each other within the framework of various kinds of public events, including those organized under the auspices of the Higher School of Economics by the non-profit foundation “Liberal Mission” headed by Yasin. Topics related to the social structure and economic policy of the country were discussed.

I know many of his students, they are generationally closer to me, I dealt with them more often than with Evgeniy Grigorievich himself. The mark that this man left is rather of a general humanitarian, spiritual nature: Yassin was an iconic figure, an indisputable moral authority not only for the democratic public, but also for much wider circles. And although Evgeniy Grigorievich passed away, what is important is that his students work, striving to embody his experience, wisdom and, I think, moral approaches in today’s decisions.”