Frida y, October 21, 2005- Frank Foundation Child Assistance International was honored to host the 20th Anniversary of Perestroika Symposium at the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC. The event, attended by dignitaries, artists, academics, business and government leaders, successfully celebrated the achievements of President Mikhail Gorbachev’s Perestroika reforms, which brought profound changes both in the Soviet Union and throughout the world. President Gorbachev has supported the Frank Foundation’s humanitarian endeavors since its establishment nearly fifteen years ago. The Frank Foundation was pleased to organize an elegant and noteworthy tribute to a close friend and leader. 


The policies of Perestroika launched by Mikhail Gorbachev upon his election as General Secretary of the Soviet Union’s Communist Party in March 1985 signified a seminal event in the history of Russia and the world. His policies of reform and restructuring are recognized as having achieved the end of the Cold War and the opening of Soviet society.



Two hundred guests attended the Washington event, whose honorary speaker was President Gorbachev and included memorable speeches by President Bill Clinton, General Colin Powell, media mogul Ted Turner, and Nobel Peace Laureate Betty Williams, along with the Frank Foundation’s President, Dr. Nina Kostina. The speakers noted Gorbachev’s achievements and the profound changes that took place as a result of his vision. President Gorbachev himself remarked upon the importance of the reforms and what more is needed today. He described the gathering as “a meeting of old friends.”
At the conclusion of the ceremony President Gorbachev was presented the Grammy Award he won in 2004 for his work, along with President Clinton and Sophia Loren, for their rendition of Peter and the Wolf. President of the Recording Academy, Neil Portsnow, made a special trip to Washington for the event to surprise President Gorbachev with the statuette.

 
 The crowd, which also included Oscar winner Shirley MacLaine, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Russian Ambassador Yuri Ushakov, several former ambassadors, Senator Carl Levin, and Congressman James Moran, also heard a performance by Tchaikovsky Award winning pianist Andrei Gavrilov.