Russia - Perestrelka

No, not perestroika, a word used by Mikhail Gorbachev to symbolize reforms. Perestrelka means "shoot-out" in Russian and is a better description of what is going on in Russia today.

The military vacuum in Russia has allowed the rise of the vory v zzakone, or thieves-in-law. A class of thugs created before the revolution and toughened in Soviet gulags, these gangsters are enamored with pomp and circumstance and even possess private jets. The government estimates that there are 289 thieves-in-law operating in Russia and 28 other countries around the world. Below these very wealthy and powerful Mafia figures are the gangs. There are about 20 criminal brigades, or gangs, that control Moscow with L.A.-style monikers for their neighborhoods. There are estimated to be 5,800 gang members in Russia. The gangs aren't quick or smart enough to control the country, so it's left to the vory v zzakone to reap the profits of absolute control.

There are four levels of Mafia in Russia. The lowest stratum consists of shopkeepers who sell goods at inflated prices to afford protection money. The enforcers are burly, loud men with a fancy for imported cars (usually stolen). They'll also double as pimps, gunrunners and drug dealers. The businessmen are unfettered capitalists who steer most of the lucrative deals the Mafia's way.

Finally, at the top of the food chain, is the "state Mafia." They are the controllers of a large percentage of the money earned by the lesser Mafia. These politicians/gangsters allow the lower echelons to operate in peace and without fear of prosecution. They have driven away a lot of Western investment and businessmen who find themselves forced to retain a local "partner" in their enterprises.

http://www.acsp.uic.edu/oicj/pubs/cji/110413.htm