End of Cold War

1. THE END…
Gorbachev and the Fall of
Communism

2. Mikhail Gorbachev
• Gorbachev was a different leader than
previous Soviet leaders
• At heart, he was not a ruthless
dictator
• He was reluctant to use force to
control people
• When the populations of E. Europe
realized this, they became bolder and
stronger

3. The Economic Failure of
Communism
• Communism failed to
serve the needs of its
people (ironic)
• Food shortages, low pay,
poor or no consumer
goods
• Given the chance, these
people chose to end
communism

4. The Role of
Technology
• It was clear to the citizens of E. Europe that W. Europe
was doing much better
• Their expectations began to rise; they began to demand
better
= 80’s
Twitter

5. Chernobyl Disaster: April 1986

6. • The meltdown of the Chernobyl nuclear
power facility embarrassed Gorbachev and
further inspired him to bring change
• Suggested Soviet technological
incompetence

8. Glasnost (1986): “Openness”
• allowed open criticism of the state, encouraging
debate
• newspapers became less censored
• The academic world was allowed (in fact ordered) to
correct Soviet history
• Gorbachev denounced Stalin
• “Socialism has not yet arrived in the Soviet Union”

9. • He denounced the narrowness of Stalin’s
command economy, praised Lenin’s New
Economic Policy
• He reaffirmed his commitment to one
ideology (communism)
• He admitted Soviets were wrong in
Hungary (’56) and Czechoslovakia (’68)
• He announced his intention to renew
détente with the USA, and he emphasized
“common human values” with Americans

10. Nationalism: Poland
and Solidarity
• Solidarity: Trade Union formed by Lech
Walesa in 1980 (declared illegal)
• In 1989, amid strikes, protests, and a
faltering economy, the Polish Communist
Party agreed to free elections
• Solidarity, now a political party, won a
landslide victory
• Lech Walesa = new president, breaks from
USSR

11. Nationalism: East
Germany and the Wall
• Wall becomes useless as Hungary becomes democratic & opens borders (East Germany
-> Hungary -> Austria)
• Nov 9, 1989 the wall was opened, free elections were promised, and arrangements
were made for the reunification of the two Germanys

12. Nationalism: Czechoslovakia
and the Velvet Revolution
• Vaclav Havel and
Alexander Dubcek
• Overwhelmed by the
protest movement, the
communist party decided
to go peacefully
• Havel became president
of the new democratic
Czechoslovakia in
December 1989

13. Boris Yeltsin
• 1990-1991 power struggle between
Gorbachev and Yeltsin
• Yeltsin: abandon Gorbachev, abandon
Soviet states?
• Economic conditions for Russians were
worse than ever, and people blamed
Gorbachev
• Yeltsin promised democratic and
economic reform – promised
conversion to the free market

14. The End of the USSR
• While Gorby was relaxing at his
dacha, 8 hardcore party officials
attempt to seize power
• Yeltsin stopped them
• Gorbachev lost face and resigned
• Yeltsin simply took the reigns
• USSR ended on…. Dec 25, 1991

15. Why did Communism Fail in
the USSR?
• Economic Stagnation – the system was no longer productive
• The Party's inability to adapt or reform – officials were stubbornly
committed to something that wasn't working anymore
• Military Spending – nearly bankrupted the nation
• USSR spent 20% of GNP on military, USA 6%
• Political Corruption – officials lined their own pockets at the expense of
the nation