Soviet Union, Essay Example

Fall of Soviet Union

The Soviet Union was founded in 1922 by Lenin and becamethe world’s largest state, spending 70 years in repressions and 45 years of Cold War, finally dissociating in 1991 at the initiative of Gorbachev.

“The significance of the Soviet Union extends far beyond its economic and military might.”(Davies, Shaw, 1989)It took three decades to turn Soviet Union into the main opponent of the supremacy of the United States in the world. But it took only couple of years for the Communist giant to decompose. The event was sudden and breathtaking for people who had come of the age during Cold War. “However, most scholars and analysts conclude that the Soviet superpower met its end in the hands of its own leadership.” (Zubok, 2007)

Mikhail Gorbachev became the ruler of the USSR in March, 1985. He was convinced that the economy needed a boost, so he came up with the decision to start up“perestroika” and “glasnost” policy.(Zubok, 2007) Corruption and bureaucracy made the effort not as successful as Gorbachev projected.  1989 was the first year in over 70 years of USSR existence when free elections took place, and Boris Yeltsin eventually took over the Congress.

The Eastern Europe revolutions, fall of Berlin Wall and the will of Baltic republics to gain freedom made the situation even worse. The strife for independence “broke the eternal union of fraternal people into 15 states”(Diuk, Karatnycky, 1990)

Events of August 1991 brought to an end the hope for the Soviet Union to survive as Boris Yeltsin occupied the Russian White House and was acknowledged to have more support and power. It took four months to negotiate the switch of the power made.  December1, 1991 was the start of the non-Russian republic’s independence.  The mighty Soviet Union finally collapsed on the Christmas Eve of 1991.

References

Diuk, N. &Karatnycky, A. (1990).The Hidden Nations: The People Challenge the Soviet Union. Morrow.

Robert W.D. Davies , Denis J.B.Shaw (1989). The Soviet Union. Unwin Human

Zubok, V.M. (2007).A Failed Empire: The Soviet Union in the Cold War from Stalin to Gorbachev. The University of North Carolina Press.