This book, written by three of the West's leading scholars of Soviet and post-Soviet affairs, traces the politics of transition in the late 1980s and early 1990s from its origins to its uncertain post-communist future. Detailed but clearly and accessibly written, The Politics of Transition provides an ideal guide for students and specialists to the changes that have been taking place in the politics of the newly-independent nations that together constitute a sixth of the world's land surface.