Dramatic Turnover in Politburo Unveiled

Three members of the ruling Communist Party Politburo were dropped today in a dramatic consolidation of Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev’s power.

The most important was Vladimir Shcherbitsky, 71, a holdover from the Brezhnev era and the Ukraine Communist Party chief. A Politburo member since 1971, he was considered one of the most conservative forces on the body.

Also retired was Viktor Chebrikov, 66, who had moved from head of the KGB in September to a new party position overseeing legal affairs.

The third was Viktor Nikonov, 60, who has been a Central Committee secretary and a Politburo member since 1987.

Chebrikov’s successor as KGB chief, Vladimir Kryuchkov, was elevated to the Communist Party’s ruling body, the Tass press agency reported at the end of a two-day meeting of the party’s policy-making Central Committee.

The head of the state planning commission, Yuri Maslyukov, also was promoted from candidate to full membership in the Politburo.

Two candidate members of the Politburo, Yuri Solovyev and Nikolai Talyzin, also were retired, Tass said. Solovyev is the Leningrad Communist Party chief.

The news agency said Gorbachev “warmly thanked” the three Politburo members for their “many years of fruitful activity” in the party, indicating that they were retiring in good graces.

In a series of stunning changes capping a Central Committee meeting devoted to ethnic affairs, two candidate members of the Politburo also were named.