Politburo

Short for Political Bureau; an executive body in a number of political parties, most often communist parties.

In the Russian Communist Party, the Politburo (Politicheskoye Buro) of its Central Committee was first created in October 1917 to direct the Bolshevik revolution, and remained active from 1919 to 1991. (From 1952-1966, it operated under the name Presidium of the Central Committee of the CPSU.) Made up of the top members of the Central Party Committee, this body made all major political decisions which were implemented by Soviet government agencies. It ceased to exist in August 1991.