Yeltsin's contributions

The recent Russian-media retrospectives on Yeltsin, including two in JRL 5395 [first, second] together with Gorbachev's own dour appraisal of Yeltsin as Russian president, oddly made no mention of the "Yeltsin constitution" adopted in his first term. Along with this major development was the institutionalization of the various trappings and ceremonies connected with founding a new, democratically-oriented, post-Soviet Russia: viz., the new flag, state seal, presidential inauguration with the Patriarch's participation--all novel and important. Perhaps these are worth singling out as substantial Yeltsin achievements.