DATE: Tuesday, September 23, 1997           TAG: 9709230247

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B5   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ERIKA REIF, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS                      LENGTH:   62 lines

KHRUSHCHEV'S SON IS NOT OPTIMISTIC ABOUT REFORMS

Political scientist Sergei Khrushchev drew lots of laughs, applause and a standing ovation for an appearance that packed Christopher Newport University's Gaines Theater Monday night.

About 400 people listened as the son of deposed Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev introduced himself as a former designer of Soviet cruise missiles who was happy not to be meeting ``in the middle of the Atlantic.''

The former Moscow Technical University professor peppered his 45-minute talk on Russian reformation with images of the old country. Such as comparing the downside of permitting bankruptcy to ``a wolf in the forest'' that will not only kill the weak, but also the strong.

And during a 30-minute audience question-and-answer period, Khrushchev responded to a query about the whereabouts of the shoe his father beat on a table at the never-forgotten United Nations meeting, ``There was no proof of this event.''

The speech was hosted in part by the World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads. The nonprofit, nonpartisan organization sponsors lecturers who can foster better understanding of international issues.

In a more serious moment, Khrushchev said he was not optimistic about the past six years of Russian market reforms. The push for democratic reforms could eventually work, but would probably take about 50 years, he said.

The key is to support emerging small businesses, Khrushchev said. But signs of decline show that bad decisions have been made: a 50 percent reduction in production and industry, and an 80 percent reduction in investments.

Russia's economic roots are so different from the United States' that what works in this country will not necessarily work over there, he said.

``They do not trust the law,'' Khrushchev said of Russian society. ``They are waiting for their leader to bring them prosperity. If not, they throw him out.''

He used the opportunity to take pot shots at Russian President Boris Yeltsin. When he described Russia's prevalent ``criminal economy,'' in which those who do business honestly fall by the wayside, he referred to many high Russian officials, including Yeltsin.

``All the criminals there are very respectable people. We all know to which criminal group they belong,'' he said.

When a question was posed about the status there of the church, Khrushchev said there were not too many real believers.

``I (do) not have too high opinions of these high communists peoples who turn into real religious peoples in one night - like Yeltsin,'' he said.

Khrushchev moved with his wife to the United States six years ago after switching his focus from engineering to political science. He teaches international relations at Brown University in Providence, R.I.

Khrushchev says he was never decisive enough to be a political leader, although he's been given opportunities to run for office. He prefers analyzing power to having power, and enjoys ``writing and sitting.''

In a telephone interview, Khrushchev said he is proud of his father, who died in 1971.

``He was the first person who began de-Stalinization and turned the country to democracy,'' he said. ``He left his country in a better situation than he got it.''

``And I think that he was a good father,'' Khrushchev added. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Sergei Khrushchev, son of deposed Soviet Premier Nikita Krushchev.

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