End of the cold war
Anjali Patel
Mikhail S. Gorbachev stepped forward as the new leader of the USSR in March 1985. He realized that Russia faced many internal problems as they fought against the US to attain global superiority. Their economy was suffering, poverty among the population was common, and freedom lagged. In response, Gorbachev introduced new policies like perestroika which was a restructuring concept that focused on economic issues. It replaced centralized government planning of the USSR with more reliance on market forces. Also, it renovated the top members the communist party. Glasnost was also introduced, it helped with the issue of freedom. It gave more leeway to religious groups and the media and allowed citizens to express their different views. By 1988, Gorbachev was able incorporate democratization which introduced an elected form of government to the USSR. In 1990, he legalized the formation of new political parties; he later became the first president of the Soviet Union.
Glasnost satisfied the people's want for more freedom of speech,but it led to many religious revolts and mass rebellions against the Soviet Union as the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania declared independence from the USSR. This was followed by similar demands from Ukraine, the Caucasus, and the Central Asian states. Germans had taken down the Berlin war signifying their independence.In December 3, 1989 George W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev officially announced the Cold War to be over. In December 1991,Byelorussia, Ukraine, and Russia itself also declared independence and thus the Soviet Union was diminished.
Glasnost satisfied the people's want for more freedom of speech,but it led to many religious revolts and mass rebellions against the Soviet Union as the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania declared independence from the USSR. This was followed by similar demands from Ukraine, the Caucasus, and the Central Asian states. Germans had taken down the Berlin war signifying their independence.In December 3, 1989 George W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev officially announced the Cold War to be over. In December 1991,Byelorussia, Ukraine, and Russia itself also declared independence and thus the Soviet Union was diminished.
Above is a picture of Mikhail S. Gorbachev. Below that are two maps of Russia before and after the Cold War. As you can see, there is a significant decrease in land after the war due to the countries breaking off from the soviet union.Below is a video of George Bush praising the country for the end of the Cold War.