Erin Tresch

Transformation of the Soviet Union: political developments and change (1982-2000)

Background
• People demonstrated hostility toward communist dictatorship on many occasions after
1945
o Anti-government demonstrations in East Berlin in 1953
o Anti-Soviet rebellion in Hungary in 1956
o Prague Spring Reform Movement in Czechoslovakia in 1968, which was the most
dramatic outburst (occurred soon after Brezhnev became General Secretary)
• These occurred out of frustration: a desire for western freedom and material conditions;
living conditions in East Germany versus West Germany, for example
• Poland’s Solidarity Movement rebelled and succeeded in changing parts of government,
but were soon crushed and back to where they began

• Leonid Brezhnev was the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
from 1964 to 1982. He attempted to rule without large reforms, which led to economic
decline. He also clamped down on cultural freedom.

o Brezhnev doctrine began with the suppression of the Prague Spring and was
essentially the idea that Russia needed to use force to keep the satellite states from
getting any closer to capitalism. It was an indication that no discussion or serious
reforms would be allowed.
• After Brezhnev left, two General Secretaries were in office before Gorbachev. Both died
after only a few months in power.

• Mikhail Gorbachev became the General Secretary in 1985. He knew that great changes
needed to be made in order to hold the USSR together. Economic growth was at a
standstill: Failed attempts at reform by Brezhnev, a stagnant economy, and the expense
of the war in Afghanistan
o His goal was to make the USSR more productive and responsive
o He began with arms reduction. He met with President Reagan four times and they
discussed stopping the acquirement of nuclear weapons. His reasons:
 It was very expensive. He hoped that reduction of nuclear weapons would
benefit the economy.
 New ideas on international affairs (he said there were no “winners” in a
nuclear war): Chernobyl heightened his awareness of danger
 o His next change was glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring),
introduced in 1985.
 Glasnost gave greater freedom of speech to citizens and censoring was
lightened. The idea behind this was to encourage people to speak up
against the Party. Gorbachev hoped that fewer restrictions would give the
younger generation more motivation to support the Communist Party.
 Perestroika was the reformation of political and economic structures to
create more democracy and efficiency.
• Gorbachev responded to civil rights critics and in 1986, he began releasing prominent
dissidents.
• In 1987, he announced plans to withdrawal troops from Afghanistan. This would relieve
the government of the responsibility and would relieve some pressure from the economy.
• By 1988, he was promising religious freedom, which was abnormal in a Communist
government.
• Gorbachev announced to the UN that he was going AGAINST the Brezhnev doctrine and
unwilling to use force to maintain control over satellite states.
• Perestroika was his main motivation when he announced plans to dismantle the one-party
political system and allow elections.
o By early 1990, the Communist Party had lost its control of the state. Multiparty
politics had been legalized and the Russian presidency had been created.
• The revolutions of 1989 ended the Soviet Empire in Eastern Europe.
o The Solidarity Party in Poland won recognition and elected Lech Walesa in
January.
o The Baltic Way occurred in August (2 million Estonians, Latvians, and
Lithuanians held hands across all three countries in a peaceful demonstration of
their unity)
o The border between Austria and Hungary was opened in May, which signified the
breakdown of Communism in Hungary. Citizens of East Germany were leaving
through the open border and eventually, the Berlin Wall was torn down in
November.
o The Velvet Revolution occurred in Czechoslovakia.
o Most revolutions were nonviolent, but there were violent struggles in Azerbaijan
and Armenia, mostly about land and minorities.
• Abroad, Gorbachev was admired and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990. At home, he
was extremely unpopular.
• The Baltic States officially declared their independence in August of 1991 (although
Lithuania had done so in January of 1990). 15 former Soviet republics did the same and
were independent at the end of 1991. Gorbachev resigned on December 25th and at
midnight on December 31st, the USSR ceased to exist.
• One of the most important consequences of the end of the USSR was the end of the Cold
War.

• Yugoslavia broke up into many pieces, but Germany reunited under Helmut Kohl, the
chancellor of Germany.

o The Yugoslav War broke out and lasted from 1991 to 1995. It was characterized
by ethnic conflict and is infamous for ethnic cleansing. Fighting began almost
immediately after Slovenia and Croatia declared their independence.
• There were many problems in Russia post-USSR. Yeltsin was president from 1991 to
1999 and focused on privatization. He left office very unpopular because his reforms left
a large gap between rich and poor and left many Russians living below the poverty line.
• Privatization is the process of switching from state-controlled organization of privately-
owned business, which was a difficult process in post-USSR Eastern Europe. A good
deal of the national wealth went to a small group of people, creating an oligarchy.
• Other problems plagued Eastern Europe:
o Law and order was broken down due to organized crime, gangsterism, and
corruption.
o The KGB was renamed and began working for the oligarchy.
o Capitalist countries moved in to take over former markets of the USSR.
o The state found it nearly impossible to collect taxes.
• Yeltsin resigned on December 31st, 1999, and Vladimir Putin is currently the president of
Russia.

Key Terms and Ideas:

• Brezhnev doctrine: was Soviet foreign policy justifying Soviet invasion of
Czechoslovakia in 1968; needed to use force to keep satellite states from stepping closer
to capitalism
• Leonid Brezhnev: General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from
1964 to 1982, who attempted to rule without large reforms, creating a stagnant and
crumbling economy
• Prague Spring: a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during its time as a
satellite state; from January 5 to August 21, 1968; was an attempt to grant additional
rights to citizens
• War in Afghanistan: a ten year conflict involving Soviet Union support of the Marxist
government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (1979 to 1989)
• The Solidarity Party: was a Polish non-governmental trade union that began in 1980 and
used nonviolent tactics to aid in the fall of Communism; the members negotiated with
communist leaders in order to legalize their party
• Mikhail Gorbachev: 7th and last General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet
Union. He attempted to reform Soviet Russia while the government was on its last leg,
but failed and the USSR fell
• Glasnost: openness; included less extreme censoring and more freedom of speech
• Perestroika: restructuring; reformation of political and economic structures to create more
democracy and efficiency
• Gorbachev backed away from the Brezhnev doctrine and was against intervention with
force.
• The Revolutions of 1989: ended the Soviet Empire in Europe
o Poland, Hungary, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Baltic States
• December 25th, 1991: Gorbachev resigns
• December 31st, 1991: USSR ceases to exist
• Helmut Kohl: chancellor of Germany during Reunification of state
• Yugoslav War: countries began claiming independence and nationalist regionalism
(ethnic boundaries) erupted into conflict
• Russian privatization: the process of switching from state-controlled organization to
privately owned business, in most cases; good deal of national wealth went to a small
group
• Boris Yeltsin: first president of Russian Federation who experienced a series of economic
and political crises; wanted to transform socialist command economy into free market
economy
• Shock therapy: sudden release of price and currency controls, withdrawal of state
subsidies, and immediate trade liberalization

To what extent did glasnost and perestroika lead to the collapse of the USSR?
Before glasnost was introduced, people within the Communist state were not encouraged
to speak their minds. However, when Gorbachev became desperate to keep everything
together, he wanted everyone to support him. It was clear that the younger generation did not
like having fewer freedoms and material possessions than their counterparts in the US. East
Germans were able to see that West Germans were materially wealthy. Even the younger
communists didn’t like the fact that the economy was going downhill. Gorbachev felt that if
he introduced glasnost, it would help them to see that Communism wasn’t as terrible as they
thought it was.
People who lived in the Baltic States had been waiting for an opportunity to speak up
against their illegal inclusion in the USSR for years. A secret clause in the Molotov-
Ribbentrop Pact led to their annexation. The Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians had been
free during the interwar period and they desired to be independent again. When glasnost
appeared, it gave them a legal way to speak up against the oppression they had felt. They
began to have nonviolent marches and rallies. Perhaps one of the best known aspects of the
Baltic Revolution is the Singing Revolution, which took place in Estonia. This set off a
chain reaction and many of the satellite states began having similar nonviolent rallies.
Perestroika was another aspect of what caused Gorbachev and the government to lose
control of the state. Gorbachev introduced numerous new ideas, like multi-party elections
and freedom of choice. When these became legal, the government realized that it was in over
its head. Then, Gorbachev tried desperately to back-track; at one point, he attempted to make
it illegal to leave the USSR and he tried to get a better grip on glasnost, but it was too late.
Countries began taking advantage of their free speech and multiparty elections.
However, it can be said that glasnost and perestroika were merely catalysts. Gorbachev
mostly decided on those two words because he and the government were desperate. The
economy was terrible, living conditions were getting worse, and the people were getting
restless. The move to a more capitalist state of mind released a lot of tension and created
unintended results. It was similar to shock therapy; the people were suddenly given rights
and opportunities that they had been deprived of before and they took advantage of that much
faster than was anticipated. The one last attempt to cling on to power ended up causing the
Soviet Union to crumble.