Gorbachev appoints a little-known provincial party boss as head of the Moscow Communist Party. His name is Boris Yeltsin.
Gorbachev has already made another appointment which will prove significant - Eduard Shevardnadze, head of the Communist Party in the republic of Georgia. He has become foreign minister, replacing the veteran - and hardline - Andrei Gromyko.
Shervardnadze, like Gorbachev, believes in creating a more liberal and dynamic society. Both men have shared the vision for years. Now they are working together to bring it into effect.
Yeltsin, establishing himself in Moscow politics, also believes in change. As his new broom sweeps through Moscow's dusty politics, he begins sacking officials and axing privileges which party stalwarts have enjoyed for years.
