One of the major causes for the USSR’s collapse in 1991 pertaining to its influence and power some realists’ suggest would be Mikhail Gorbachev’s plans for reform to what some might call radical changes that were to be made about communist rule due to the “changes” that he had seen taking place in the “world of politics” since becoming leader (Koslowski, p.219). Prior to Gorbachev’s time as leader previous Soviet leaders had kept a tight control over Russian politics and Soviet influence within satellite states which we know of today as oppressive, however, it had worked for the Soviets in maintaining their control. Under the realists’ view power is an essential criterion for a state 's safety as having power can have a state both outlast and …show more content…
After becoming Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev had plans to “reform” many aspects of communism in Russia as well as its satellite states that jeopardized the Soviet Union 's longevity (Kalashnikov, p.77). Gorbachev would be the first leader of many since Leonid Brezhnev that came before him to critically consider the economic hardships and issues that Russia and its satellite states were facing. It can also be stated that Gorbachev was “unwilling to use military force” to resolve issues as seen in later political conflicts that plagued Russia and its satellite states (Todd, p.198). The consequences that came from Gorbachev’s decisions whether he knew it at the time or not was that they would create more political turmoil for the Soviet Union due to him not using force to maintain his dominance in Russian politics, control satellite states, or display Soviet presence globally similar to previous leaders before him for the self-preservation of the Soviet Union. From the realists’ perspective a connection can be made between Gorbachev’s decisions to not use force over concerns of ethics and morale, and the dismantling of the Soviet Union leaving the USSR vulnerable in various national aspects such as economics, politics, and global influence, along with the global perception of the …show more content…
The liberal suggestions of Russia’s poor economic performance, use of military force over economic leverage, and isolation from the international community, along with overlooking state interests’ outside of Russia provide plausible reasons for the USSR’s collapse. Historically, since Joseph Stalin left office the Russian economy had been stagnant for a very long time to which Russia never fully attempted to resolve by focusing government attention to national needs. The satellite states under Soviet control for years had suffered great oppression under communist rule, powered by political corruption and fear, to which this cause and effect scenario never made them any better economically. The national and state interests of Soviet satellite states had greatly differed to that of the Soviet Unions to the point where almost all of separated from Russia by 1991. Furthermore, the collapse of the Soviet Union had been a turning point of the decade in 1991 and historically as it was one of the most important moments in history leading to the end of the Cold War easing global fears of nuclear
The Legacy of Russia and the Soviet Union - Authoritarian and Repressive Traditions that Refuse to Die
Despite the appearance of goodwill exhibited in Khrushchev’s speeches, a Western leader would be inherently skeptical of the Stalin crony as he attempts to gain and maintain power over the Soviet Union and his own party. An obvious politician, Khrushchev’s “peaceful coexistence” and “Secret Speech” in February 1956 served to distance him from the unpopular and failing Stalinist approach of communist control. His rhetoric, however, remains no less expansionist than his predecessor. Specifically, in his comments on “peaceful coexistence”, Khrushchev emphasized the ultimate triumph of the socialist system, but concedes that military intervention alone will not achieve such a victory (Judge & Langdon, 339). Rhetoric aside, one must consider Khrushchev’s
Soviet foreign policy was based on an ideological confrontation with the West, embodied by the "world imperialism" and its ultimate goal was to contribute to its destruction, didn’t change, when Khrushchev came to power.
One of the most significant events in the twentieth century was the dissolution of the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) in 1991. The reason why this event was so significant was because it ended the tension between the Soviet Union and the United States of America, the Cold War, and the reign of one of the greatest world powers at the time. There were many reasons for the collapse, and it has been postulated that the Perestroika reforms had the most significant effect. The reforms, implemented by Mikael Gorbachev, were meant to address the dire financial and economic situation the country was facing as a result of the incompetent Stalin regime. Though these reforms were created with the best intentions, unfortunately they failed, eventually leading to great dissatisfaction with Gorbachev’s leadership. The Communist Party was so displeased with the performance of their leader that they staged a coup d’état to remove him from power (History.com). Thus, by the end of 1991, the Perestroika reforms directly lead to the dissolution of the Soviet Union due to the collapse of the economy, lack of infrastructure of modernization, and failure to move the communist party towards democracy. One of the largest goals of the reforms was to address the broken economy.
Suny, Ronald Grigor. The Soviet Experiment: Russia, the USSR, and the Successor States. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011.
The overall collapse of the Communist regime came rather quickly, but there were underlying causes of the collapse that were apparent during the preceding decades. On the surface, the 1970s looked good for the Soviet Union. A lot of certain aspects were still going the Soviet Unions way. However, in 1975, the Soviet Union’s power peaked. In 1975, the Soviet Union’s power began to dwindle and there were six underlying causes of the collapse that can be dated back to that year. In this essay I will discuss these six causes and how they helped bring about the actual collapse of the Soviet regime.
During 1950-1991 The Soviet Union was considered one of the most powerful countries in the world. Known during this time for its enormous military and the overtaking and enforcing total communist ruler over all the eastern block European countries.The conquering of these countries gained the Soviet Union useful resources such as oil, food, minerals,goods,and land which during this time was very useful to the Soviet Union. Even with all of these advantages the Soviet Union had several internal problems such as severe famine , poor economy,People working in horrible conditions in factories being payed minimum wage, and depending on rival countries for food and supplies. It got worse when Gorbachev took over and made several new reforms such as glasnost and perestroika and with all of the rapid changes in the S.U ( Soviet Union) government it caused social chaos and disorder and rebellion against Gorbachev. (GQ) Though which of the factors contributed more to the collapse of the Soviet Union, Economy or politics?.(Claim) During this time period Political factors seem more responsible to the collapse of the Soviet Union, because even though the Soviet Union had several food shortages it does not compare to how the Soviet Union lost several sources of income and resources such as Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, etc.(Significance) Countries like Poland which has plenty of
The cold war was failed by the Soviet Union for many reasons, including the sudden collapse of communism (Baylis & Smith, 2001.) This sudden collapse of communism was brought on ultimately by internal factors. The soviet unions president Gorbachev’s reforms: glasnost (openness) and perestroika (political reconstructering) ultimately caused the collapse of the Soviet Empire. Gorbachev’s basics for glasnost were the promotion of principles of freedom to criticize; the loosening of controls on media and publishing; and the freedom of worship. His essentials of perestroika were, a new legislature; creation of an executive presidency; ending of the ‘leading role’ of the communist party; allowing state enterprises to sell part of their product on the open market; lastly, allowing foreign companies to own Soviet enterprises (Baylis & Smith, 2001.) Gorbachev believed his reforms would benefit his country, but the Soviet Union was ultimately held together by the soviet tradition he was trying to change. The Soviet Union was none the less held together by “…powerful central institutions, pressure for ideological conformity, and the threat of force.
The purpose of this investigation is to evaluate Gorbachev’s two main policies of reformation, glasnost and perestroika, in the Soviet Union during the Cold War and to assess if the policies were significant or vital to the internal collapse of the Soviet Union.
...eeded in putting communism on the political map of the world. Governments across Europe and Latin America emulated Stalin and instituted their own brands of communism within their respective countries. Yet, what was to be the permanent revolution, has infected and affected the world for almost an entire century. Every year since 1917 has seen people in revolt. Economics, austerity, and political corruption have been the common causes of popular uprisings across the world, and whether the revolutions have been peaceful or violent, the result has nearly always been a change in the political structure and the redrawing of boundary lines. The continued presence of Russian-backed revolutions combined with the cries of the European people for independence and security reflect the ongoing influence of the Russian Revolution on the whole of Europe and, possibly, the world.
The end of the Cold War was one of the most unexpected and important events in geopolitics in the 20th century. The end of the Cold War can be defined as the end of the bipolar power struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union, which had existed since the end of the World War II. The conclusion of the Cold War can be attributed to Gorbachev’s series of liberalizations in the 1980s, which exposed the underlying economic problems in the Soviet Union and Eastern bloc states that had developed in the 1960s and 70s and prevented the USSR from being able to compete with the US as a superpower. Nevertheless, Reagan’s policies of a renewed offensive against communism, Gorbachev’s rejection of the Brezhnev doctrine and the many nationalities
It is undeniable that Ronald Reagan’s approach to the Soviet Union was vital in its defeat. The Encyclopedia Britannica acknowledges that “His policies have been credited with contributing to the demise of Soviet communism.” Reagan had no qualms in confronting the Soviets and communism, as shown when he described the Soviet Union as both an “evil empire” and “the focus of evil in the modern world” (Britannica).
In the early 1980s prior to Gorbachev’s presidency, the soviet economy was wracked by chronic shortages of food and consumer items. These shortages were in part due because of Leonid Brezhnev leadership being inefficient at directing the soviet economy. It was against this backdrop of economic decline and political instability that Mikhail Gorbachev came to power. Gorbachev came from a peasant family and this humble background played a large role in his political thinking and gave him a strong humanitarian sympathy. His separation from the old regime gave him greater freedoms to move away from old thinking and enact policies grounded in a new way of thinking. Gorbachev was under different circumstances than past leaders because people at around this time wanted the country to move in different directions and at the same time, this led to Gorb...
The Soviet Union, which was once a world superpower in the 19th century saw itself in chaos going into the 20th century. These chaoses were marked by the new ideas brought in by the new leaders who had emerged eventually into power. Almost every aspect of the Soviet Union was crumbling at this period both politically and socially, as well as the economy. There were underlying reasons for the collapse of communism in the Soviet Union and eventually Eastern Europe. The economy is the most significant aspect of every government. The soviet economy was highly centralized with a “command economy” (p.1. fsmitha.com), which had been broken down due to its complexity and centrally controlled with corruption involved in it. A strong government needs a strong economy to maintain its power and influence, but in this case the economic planning of the Soviet Union was just not working, which had an influence in other communist nations in Eastern Europe as they declined to collapse.
The most powerful communist country in history, the Union of Soviet Socialists Republics, also known as the Soviet Union. Although being the biggest country the world has come to know, the country’s domestic struggles led to its downfall. Others suggest the Union’s desperation to outperform the United States of America in military and space flight led to excessive spending and in the end, stagnation. Moreover after decades of repressive communist rule, domestic attitudes towards the governments went to their all-time lows and led to the population’s unrest. Economic and political issues failed to get prioritized and continued to get ignored. Mikhal Gorbachev, the last leader of the USSR, introduced his plans, attempting to change the flaws of their government while keeping the same fundamentals of Communism. In the end, his plans backfired and the population used its new found freedom of speech, given to them by Gorbachev, against the communist government.