Gorbachev starts new party

Moscow - The former Soviet president, Mr Mikhail Gorbachev, announced yesterday the creation of a new Social Democratic Party…

Moscow - The former Soviet president, Mr Mikhail Gorbachev, announced yesterday the creation of a new Social Democratic Party he hoped would help Russia avoid the scourge of political extremism.

In his first public appearance since the funeral of his wife, Raisa, last month, Mr Gorbachev said the party - which is too late to register for the December parliamentary elections - would choose a leader in January.

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