Reasons for the collapse of the USSR
Let's consider the most basic versions of why the USSR collapsed. In order to analyze the reasons for the collapse of the USSR, some return to 1991, to the days of the August Putsch, and others to 1985, when the “perestroika” Gorbachev came to power. But personally, I am inclined to think that we need to move back to the 1980s, it was then that the so-called point of no return began, from which the countdown to the existence of the USSR began. So let's start in order.
- Personnel shortage
Probably one of the main reasons for the collapse of the USSR is the shortage of party personnel. To do this, it is enough to remember, thanks to whom the USSR was formed and who was its leadership initially? At first, these were, in fact, fanatics of their idea, revolutionaries who sought to overthrow the tsarist regime and build communism, where all people are equal and, working, will live in abundance. After the war, leading positions in the USSR were occupied by former military men, this disciplined old generation who had an ardent communist ideology, they really wanted to build communism. Most of them could not even admit the thought that even a single penny from the state budget was stolen, although they took advantage of state benefits and their official position, but this can not be taken into account at all, especially when compared with today's leaders. However, this old generation could not exist forever, when the leaders began to die; they could not find worthy personnel to replace them, or the worthy ones were simply not allowed in, since those who remained had their own plans.
Probably, it all started from the moment when “dear” Leonid Ilyich became completely “bad”; many witnesses of that period noted that General Sec. I failed very much, and quite quickly and strongly. The reason for this, many historians call “Brezhnev’s injections”, which were injected into him by a nurse, a KGB employee. At the same time, the logical chain converges, the chairman of the KGB at that time was Andropov, he had long been aiming to replace Brezhnev, and it is quite possible that such injections were actually purposefully administered to worsen the health of Leonid Ilyich. Andropov's dream came true; in November 1982, he headed the state after the death of Brezhnev, at 69 years old.
But Andropov’s reign ended after 15 months, since before taking up the post of General Secretary, he knew that he did not have long to live, but, nevertheless, he took such a high post. Andrpov's death was the second funeral in 2 years, since the last funeral of a Soviet leader was in 1953. The second death in a row of the country's leader in such a short period of time could not but affect the country in all its spheres. Andropov’s place was taken by Chernenko, who at that time was already 72 years old, but Konstantin Ustinovich also died almost a year after his appointment to the country’s main position. The third funeral was a blow for the USSR, the country is losing the ideological fundamentalists of communism, and also does not have a clear path of development, since Andropov and Chernenko had their own plans, but did not have time to implement them.
Jokes on this topic even began to circulate among the people. Understanding such an absurd situation, the Politburo decides to choose the relatively young Gorbachev as the leader of the country, who at that time was 54 years old, and he was really young in the political bureau, from that moment the collapse of the USSR began to occur at an irreversible pace, Gorbachev became the catalyst for this process.
The incompetence of the new leadership led by Gorbachev, as well as new cadres in politics. bureau and leadership of the country, who ultimately turned out to be traitors, the desire of the leaders of the union republics to secede and make their countries independent in order to lead them themselves - all this is the result of Gorbachev’s perestroika.
- “Everyone pulled the blanket over themselves”
As was said just above, all the leaders of the union states “pulled the blanket over themselves” and they all wanted independence. Perestroika weakened tight control over both leaders and people. As a result, all the leaders of the union states, one way or another, tried to secede and declare independence at the right opportunity. The destruction of the Berlin Wall and the unification of Germany added fuel to the fire. Mass protests and unrest in the Baltic states and some other republics contributed to their imbalance.
The beginning of the end occurred in August 1991, when the “August Putsch” occurred; as a result of this coup d’etat, within a month, the Baltic countries left the USSR. After this, the Soviet Union began to crumble. This also includes the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, where a military clash began between the Armenian SSR and the Azerbaijani USSR, Moldova, etc.
Against the backdrop of all these events, after the referendum on “preserving the union,” the leadership of the union republics nevertheless declared independence.
- Ideology has outlived its usefulness
It’s no secret that the USSR was based on communist ideology; it was propagated from everywhere. From birth, the child was instilled with communist values, even starting from kindergarten, and especially at school, in which all the students became Octobrists, and then pioneers, and so on. More than one generation lived according to this scheme, but the years passed, the world changed, and communist ideology could not resist it.
The main ideologists of the country and leaders passed away and in their place, as was said in the first reason, incompetent people came who did not believe in communism, they did not need it. Moreover, people themselves stopped believing in him, especially when the crisis began.
The rallies suppressed by the special services and the persecution of opposition figures were probably one of the keys to the successful existence of the USSR, but during perestroika, the oppositionists became more active and launched active, unhindered activities.
Perhaps the Chernobyl disaster can be attributed to this reason, since it dealt a significant blow to both the reputation of the USSR and its leaders and affected people. The Soviet system, which forced builders into a framework for delivering objects within a certain time frame, and to coincide with communist holidays, made itself felt, and very cruelly, with the Chernobyl tragedy. The fourth power unit of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and exactly like all the previous three units, were put into operation with violations; according to experts, the fourth power unit could not be operated at all, since it did not meet safety standards; the builders needed to commission it on time. This factor, as well as the looseness of the system and the experiments carried out on that ill-fated night, became fatal in everything. The deliberate concealment of the consequences of the explosion further aggravated the situation. As a result, all this was a powerful blow to the entire Soviet system and the country as a whole.
- Crisis in all areas
As they say: the fish rots from the head, and this is what happened to the Soviet Union. Gorbachev was not a strong leader, and in order to hold such a large country, a strong person is needed. The country needed radical reforms, but all the reforms undertaken were failures. Lack of goods on shelves, constant shortages, huge queues, depreciation of money - all these are the consequences of perestroika. People are simply tired of living like this, or rather surviving, without any prospect that this crisis will ever end.
- "Pepsi-Cola and jeans"
With Gorbachev’s coming to power, the Iron Curtain began to slowly rise, and Western fashion poured in, its main attributes, perhaps, being jeans and Pepsi-Cola. Seeing how they live in the West, how they dress, what they drive, etc. Soviet citizens wanted the same. By the end of the 80s, the words “Lenin” and “communism” became the subject of ridicule, people felt the smell of freedom and wanted change, which was reflected in V. Tsoi’s song.
- The Americans still won
Everyone knows that America was the main enemy of the USSR. There has always been confrontation between the USA and the USSR, and in almost everything. Both countries were considered superpowers and fought for world domination, and the ideologies and worldviews of the two countries were completely different.
There is a version that Gorbachev collaborated with the United States, and it was not for nothing that they called him a “good guy.” There is also an opinion that Brezhnev, Andropov and Chernenko were killed, and all traces of these murders lead to the CIA. The neutralization of the entire old party nomenklatura, those hardened ones, and the appointment of Gorbachev, a pro-democratic politician, was to the advantage of the Americans. The Cold War of that time ended peacefully and in cold blood. Why fight the system with weapons if you can help this system become obsolete...
These, in my opinion, are the main reasons why the Soviet Union collapsed. Someone, for sure, will be inclined to one of the versions, but someone, including myself, is inclined to all these versions, that is, all the reasons listed above collectively provoked the collapse of the USSR, some of them to a greater extent, to some to a lesser extent, but, nevertheless, all of the above played a role.
As for the consequences, we can see them ourselves; not a single country that was part of the USSR, after the collapse, acquired the values it aspired to. But, nevertheless, there is no need to be nostalgic about the USSR, since life then was closed, people were simply kinder, and there was less theft by government managers, that’s the whole secret of the fabulous time.
The collapse of the USSR (also the collapse of the USSR) is the process of systemic disintegration in the national economy, social structure, social and political sphere of the Soviet Union, which led to the cessation of its existence as a state in 1991.
Background
In 1922, at the time of its creation, the Soviet Union inherited most of the territory, multinational structure and multi-religious environment of the Russian Empire. In 1917–1921, Finland and Poland gained independence and declared sovereignty: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Tyva. Some territories of the former Russian Empire were annexed in 1939–1946.
The USSR included: Western Ukraine and Western Belarus, the Baltic states, Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina, the Tuvan People's Republic, Transcarpathia, as well as a number of other territories.
As one of the victors in World War II, the Soviet Union, following its results and on the basis of international treaties, secured the right to own and dispose of vast territories in Europe and Asia, access to seas and oceans, colossal natural and human resources. The country emerged from the bloody war with a fairly developed socialist-type economy for that time, based on regional specialization and interregional economic ties, most of which worked for the defense of the country.
The countries of the so-called socialist camp were in the sphere of influence of the USSR. In 1949, the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was created, and later a collective currency, the transferable ruble, was introduced into circulation, which was in circulation in socialist countries. Thanks to strict control over ethno-national groups and the introduction into the mass consciousness of the slogan of unbreakable friendship and brotherhood of the peoples of the USSR, it was possible to minimize the number of international (ethnic) conflicts of a separatist or anti-Soviet nature.
Individual protests by workers that took place in the 1960s and 1970s were mostly protests against the unsatisfactory supply of socially significant goods and services, low wages and dissatisfaction with the work of local authorities.
The Constitution of the USSR of 1977 proclaims a single, new historical community of people - the Soviet people. In the mid and late 1980s, with the beginning of perestroika, glasnost and democratization, the nature of protests and mass protests changed somewhat.
The union republics that made up the USSR, according to the Constitution, were considered sovereign states; each of which was assigned by the Constitution the right to secede from the USSR, but the legislation did not contain legal norms regulating the procedure for this secession. Only in April 1990 was a corresponding law adopted, which provided for the possibility of a union republic secession from the USSR, but after the implementation of rather complex and difficult-to-implement procedures.
Formally, the Union republics had the right to enter into relations with foreign states, conclude treaties with them and exchange
diplomatic and consular representatives, participate in the activities of international organizations; for example, the Byelorussian and Ukrainian SSRs, based on the results of the agreements reached at the Yalta Conference, had their representatives in the UN from the moment of its founding.
In reality, such “initiatives from below” required detailed coordination in Moscow. All appointments to key party and economic positions in the union republics and autonomies were previously reviewed and approved at the center; the decisive role in the one-party system was played by the leadership and Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee.
Reasons for the disappearance of a huge power
There is no consensus among historians on the reasons for the collapse of the USSR. Or rather, there were several of them. Here are the most basic ones.
Degradation of power
The USSR was formed by fanatics of the idea. Ardent revolutionaries came to power. Their main goal is to build a communist state where everyone would be equal. All people are brothers. They work and live the same.
Only fundamentalists of communism were allowed to power. And every year there were fewer and fewer of them. The senior bureaucracy was aging. The country was burying its General Secretaries. After Brezhnev's death, Andropov comes to power. And two years later - his funeral. The post of General Secretary is occupied by Chernenko. A year later he is buried. Gorbachev becomes Secretary General. He was too young for the country. At the time of his election he was 54 years old. Before Gorbachev, the average age of leaders was 75 years.
The new management turned out to be incompetent. There was no longer that fanaticism and that ideology. Gorbachev became the catalyst for the collapse of the USSR. His famous perestroikas led to a weakening of the monocentrism of power. And the union republics took advantage of this moment.
Everyone wanted independence
The leaders of the republics sought to get rid of centralized power. As mentioned above, with the arrival of Gorbachev, they did not fail to take advantage of democratic reforms. Regional authorities had a lot of reasons for dissatisfaction:
- centralized decision-making hampered the activities of the union republics;
- time was wasted;
- individual regions of a multinational country wanted to develop independently, because they had their own culture, their own history;
- a certain nationalism is characteristic of every republic;
- numerous conflicts, protests, coups only added fuel to the fire; and many historians consider the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the creation of a United Germany to be the catalyst.
Crisis in all areas of life
Well, crisis phenomena in the USSR were characteristic of all areas:
- there was a catastrophic shortage of essential goods on the shelves;
- products of inadequate quality were produced (the pursuit of deadlines, cheaper raw materials led to a drop in the quality of consumer goods);
- uneven development of individual republics in the union; the weakness of the commodity economy of the USSR (this became especially noticeable after the decline in world oil prices);
- severe censorship in the media; active growth of the shadow economy.
The situation was aggravated by man-made disasters. The people especially rebelled after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. The planned economy in this situation caused many deaths. The reactors were commissioned on time, but not in proper condition. And all the information was hidden from people.
With the arrival of Gorbachev, the veil to the West was lifted. And the people saw how others lived. Soviet citizens smelled freedom. They wanted more.
The USSR turned out to be problematic in terms of morality. Soviet people had sex, drank, indulged in drugs, and encountered crime. Years of silence and denial made the confession too harsh.
Collapse of Ideology
The huge country was based on a strong idea: to build a bright communist future. The ideals of communism were instilled from birth. Kindergarten, school, work - a person grew together with the idea of equality and brotherhood. Any attempts to think differently, or even hints of an attempt, were harshly suppressed.
But the country's main ideologists were aging and passing away. The younger generation did not need communism. For what? If there is nothing to eat, it is impossible to buy or say anything, it is difficult to go somewhere. Moreover, people are dying due to perestroika.
Not the least role in the collapse of the USSR was played by the activities of the United States. Huge powers laid claim to world domination. And the States systematically “erased” the union state from the map of Europe (Cold War, triggering the fall in oil prices).
All these factors did not even leave a chance to preserve the USSR. The great power disintegrated into separate states.
Fatal dates
The collapse of the USSR began in 1985. Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, announced the beginning of perestroika. In short, its essence meant a complete reform of the Soviet system of government and economy. As for the latter, a transition to private enterprise in the form of cooperatives is being tried. If we take the ideological side of the issue, a softening of censorship and improvement of relations with the West were declared. Perestroika causes euphoria among the population, which receives unprecedented, by the standards of the Soviet Union, freedom.
So what went wrong then?
Almost everything. The fact is that the economic situation in the country has begun to deteriorate. Plus, national conflicts are escalating - for example, the conflict in Karabakh. In 1989–1991, a total shortage of food began in the USSR. On the external field, the situation is no better - the Soviet Union is losing its position in Eastern Europe. Pro-Soviet communist regimes are overthrown in Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Romania.
Meanwhile, the population is no longer euphoric due to food shortages. In 1990, disappointment with the Soviet government reached its limit. Legalized at this time
private property, stock and currency markets are formed, cooperation begins to take the form of Western-type business. In the external arena, the USSR is finally losing its superpower status. Separatist sentiments are brewing in the union republics. The priority of republican legislation over union legislation is widely announced. In general, it is clear to everyone that the Soviet Union is living its last days.
Wait, there was another putsch there, tanks?
That's right. First, on June 12, 1991, Boris Yeltsin became president of the RSFSR. Mikhail Gorbachev was still the President of the USSR. In August of the same year, the Treaty on the Union of Sovereign States was published. By that time, all the union republics had declared their sovereignty. Thus, the USSR ceased to exist in its usual form, offering a soft form of confederation. 9 out of 15 republics were supposed to enter there.
But the signing of the agreement was thwarted by old avid communists. They created the State Committee for a State of Emergency (GKChP) and declared their disobedience to Gorbachev. In short, their goal is to prevent the collapse of the Union.
And then the famous August putsch happened, which also famously failed. Those same tanks were driving into Moscow; Yeltsin’s defenders were blocking the equipment with trolleybuses. On August 21, a column of tanks was withdrawn from Moscow. Later, members of the State Emergency Committee are arrested. And the union republics are declaring independence en masse. On December 1, a referendum is held in Ukraine, declaring independence from August 24, 1991.
What happened on December 8?
The last nail in the coffin of the USSR. Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, as the founders of the USSR, stated that “the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as a subject of international law and a geopolitical reality ceases to exist.” And they announced the creation of the CIS. On December 25−26, the authorities of the USSR as a subject of international law ceased to exist. On December 25, Mikhail Gorbachev announced his resignation.
3 more reasons that caused the collapse of the USSR
The country's economy and the war in Afghanistan were not the only reasons that “helped” to collapse the Soviet Union. Let's name 3 more events that occurred in the mid-to-late 90s of the last century, and many began to associate with the collapse of the USSR:
- Fall of the Iron Curtain. The propaganda of the Soviet leadership about the “terrible” standard of living in the United States and democratic countries of Europe collapsed after the fall of the Iron Curtain.
- Man-made disasters. Since the mid-80s, man-made disasters have occurred throughout the country. The apogee was the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
- Morality. The low morality of people holding public positions helped the development of theft and lawlessness in the country.
- If we talk about the main geopolitical consequences of the collapse of the Soviet Union, then first of all it should be said that only from that moment could globalization begin. Before this, the world was divided. Moreover, these borders were often impassable. And when the Soviet Union collapsed, the world became a single information, economic, and political system. Bipolar confrontation is a thing of the past, and globalization has taken place.
- The second most important consequence is a serious restructuring of the entire Eurasian space. This is the emergence of 15 states on the site of the former Soviet Union. Then came the collapse of Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. The emergence of a huge number of not only new states, but also unrecognized republics, which sometimes fought bloody wars among themselves.
- The third consequence is the emergence of a unipolar moment on the world political scene. For some time, the United States remained the only superpower in the world that, in principle, had the ability to solve any problems at its own discretion. At this time, there was a sharp increase in the American presence not only in those regions that fell away from the Soviet Union. I mean both Eastern Europe and the former republics of the Soviet Union, but also in other regions of the globe.
- The fourth consequence is a major expansion of the West. If earlier the Eastern European states were not considered like the West, now they not only began to be considered, but actually institutionally became part of Western alliances. I mean members of the European Union and NATO.
- The next most important consequence is the transformation of China into the second largest center of world development. China, after the Soviet Union left the historical arena, on the contrary, began to gain strength, applying the exact opposite development scheme. The opposite of the one proposed by Mikhail Gorbachev. If Gorbachev proposed democracy without a market economy, then China proposed a market economy while maintaining the old political regime and achieved amazing success. If at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union the economy of the RSFSR was three times larger than the Chinese one, now the Chinese economy is four times the size of the economy of the Russian Federation.
- And finally, the last major consequence is that developing countries, especially African ones, have been left to fend for themselves. Because if during the bipolar confrontation each of the poles in one way or another tried to provide assistance to its allies outside its immediate zone of influence or outside its countries, then after the end of the Cold War all this stopped. And all the flows of assistance that went towards development in different regions of the globe, both from the Soviet Union and from the West, ended abruptly. And this led to serious economic problems in virtually all developing countries in the 90s.
Conclusions
The Soviet Union was a large-scale project, but it was destined to fail due to the internal and foreign policies of the states. Many researchers believe that the fate of the USSR was predetermined with the coming to power of Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985. The official date of the collapse of the Soviet Union was 1991.
There are a great many possible reasons why the USSR collapsed, and the main ones are considered to be the following:
- economic;
- ideological;
- social;
- political.
Economic difficulties in the countries led to the collapse of the union of republics. In 1989, the government officially recognized the economic crisis. This period was characterized by the main problem of the Soviet Union - a commodity shortage. There were no goods on free sale except bread. The population was transferred to special coupons, with which they could get the necessary food.
After the decline in world oil prices, the union of republics faced a big problem. This led to the fact that over two years foreign trade turnover decreased by 14 billion rubles. Low quality products began to be produced, which provoked a general economic decline in the country. The Chernobyl tragedy accounted for 1.5% of national income and led to mass unrest. Many were outraged by the government's policies. The population suffered from hunger and poverty. The main factor why the USSR collapsed was the rash economic policy of M. Gorbachev. The launch of mechanical engineering, a reduction in foreign purchases of consumer goods, an increase in salaries and pensions and other reasons undermined the country's economy. Political reforms were ahead of economic processes and led to the inevitable weakening of the established system. In the first years of his reign, Mikhail Gorbachev enjoyed wild popularity among the population, as he introduced innovations and changed stereotypes. However, after the era of perestroika, the country entered years of economic and political hopelessness. Unemployment began, shortages of food and essential goods, hunger, and crime increased.
The political factor in the collapse of the union was the desire of the leaders of the republics to get rid of centralized power. Many regions wanted to develop independently, without orders from centralized authorities; each had its own culture and history. Over time, the population of the republics begins to incite rallies and uprisings on national grounds, which forced the leaders to make radical decisions. The democratic orientation of M. Gorbachev's policy helped them create their own internal laws and a plan for leaving the Soviet Union.
Historians highlight another reason why the USSR collapsed. The leadership and foreign policy of the United States played a significant role in the end of the union. The United States and the Soviet Union have always been fighting for world domination. It was in America's first interest to wipe the USSR off the map. Evidence of this is the ongoing “cold curtain” policy and the artificially low price of oil. Many researchers believe that it was the United States that contributed to the emergence of Mikhail Gorbachev at the helm of a great power. Year after year, he planned and executed the fall of the Soviet Union.
On December 26, 1991, the Soviet Union officially ceased to exist. Some political parties and organizations did not want to acknowledge the collapse of the USSR, believing that the country was attacked and influenced by Western powers.
TASS-DOSSIER /Kirill Titov/. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, formed in 1922, was created by the leadership of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) as the basis for the future world revolution. The declaration of its formation stated that the Union would be “a decisive step towards uniting the working people of all countries into the World Socialist Soviet Republic.”
To attract as many socialist republics as possible into the USSR, in the first Soviet constitution (and all subsequent ones), each of them was assigned the right to freely secede from the Soviet Union. In particular, in the last Basic Law of the USSR - the Constitution of 1977 - this norm was enshrined in Article 72. Since 1956, the Soviet state included 15 union republics.
Reasons for the collapse of the USSR
From a legal point of view, the USSR was an asymmetrical federation (its subjects had different statuses) with elements of a confederation. At the same time, the union republics were in an unequal position. In particular, the RSFSR did not have its own Communist Party or Academy of Sciences; the republic was also the main donor of financial, material and human resources for the other members of the Union.
The unity of the Soviet state system was ensured by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). It was built on a strict hierarchical principle and duplicated all state bodies of the Union. In Article 6 of the Basic Law of the USSR of 1977, the Communist Party was assigned the status of “the leading and guiding force of Soviet society, the core of its political system, state and public organizations.”
By the 1980s The USSR found itself in a state of systemic crisis. A significant part of the population has lost faith in the dogmas of the officially declared communist ideology. The economic and technological lag of the USSR from Western countries became evident. As a result of the national policy of the Soviet government, independent national elites were formed in the union and autonomous republics of the USSR.
An attempt to reform the political system during perestroika 1985–1991. led to the aggravation of all existing contradictions. In 1988–1990 On the initiative of the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Mikhail Gorbachev, the role of the CPSU was significantly weakened.
In 1988, the reduction of the party apparatus began, and a reform of the electoral system was carried out. In 1990, the constitution was changed and Article 6 was eliminated, as a result of which the CPSU was completely separated from the state. At the same time, inter-republican relations were not subject to revision, which led, against the backdrop of weakening party structures, to a sharp increase in separatism in the union republics.
According to a number of researchers, one of the key decisions during this period was Mikhail Gorbachev’s refusal to equalize the status of the RSFSR with other republics. As Assistant Secretary General Anatoly Chernyaev recalled, Gorbachev “ironly” stood against the creation of the Communist Party of the RSFSR and the granting of full status to the Russian republic.” Such a measure, according to a number of historians, could contribute to the unification of Russian and allied structures and ultimately preserve a single state.
Interethnic clashes
During the years of perestroika in the USSR, interethnic relations sharply worsened. In 1986, major interethnic clashes occurred in Yakutsk and Alma-Ata (Kazakh SSR, now Kazakhstan). In 1988, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began, during which the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region, populated by Armenians, announced its secession from the Azerbaijan SSR. This was followed by the Armenian-Azerbaijani armed conflict. In 1989, clashes began in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Moldova, South Ossetia, etc. By mid-1990, more than 600 thousand citizens of the USSR became refugees or internally displaced persons.
"Parade of Sovereignties"
In 1988, a movement for independence began in the Baltic states. It was led by the “popular fronts” - mass movements created with the permission of the Union authorities in support of perestroika.
On November 16, 1988, the Supreme Council (SC) of the Estonian SSR adopted a declaration on the state sovereignty of the republic and introduced changes to the republican constitution, which made it possible to suspend the operation of union laws on the territory of the Estonia. On May 26 and July 28, 1989, similar acts were adopted by the Armed Forces of the Lithuanian and Latvian SSR. On March 11 and 30, 1990, the Armed Forces of Lithuania and Estonia adopted laws on the restoration of their own independent states, and on May 4, the Latvian Parliament approved the same act.
On September 23, 1989, the Supreme Council of the Azerbaijan SSR adopted a constitutional law on the state sovereignty of the republic. During 1990, similar acts were adopted by all other union republics.
Law on the withdrawal of union republics from the USSR
On April 3, 1990, the USSR Supreme Council adopted the law “On the procedure for resolving issues related to the withdrawal of a union republic from the USSR.” According to the document, such a decision was to be made through a referendum appointed by the local legislative body. Moreover, in a union republic, which included autonomous republics, regions and districts, a plebiscite had to be held separately for each autonomy.
A decision to withdraw was considered legitimate if it was supported by at least two-thirds of voters. Issues of the status of allied military facilities, enterprises, financial and credit relations of the republic with the center were subject to settlement during a transition period of five years. In practice, the provisions of this law were not implemented.
Proclamation of the sovereignty of the RSFSR
The Declaration of State Sovereignty of the RSFSR was adopted on June 12, 1990 by the First Congress of People's Deputies of the Republic. In the second half of 1990, the leadership of the RSFSR, headed by Chairman of the Supreme Council Boris Yeltsin, significantly expanded the powers of the government, ministries and departments of the RSFSR. Enterprises, branches of union banks, etc. located on its territory were declared the property of the republic.
The Declaration of Russian sovereignty was adopted not to destroy the Union, but to stop the withdrawal of autonomies from the RSFSR. The autonomization plan was developed by the CPSU Central Committee in order to weaken the RSFSR and Yeltsin, and envisaged giving all autonomies the status of union republics. For the RSFSR, this meant the loss of half of its territory, almost 20 million people and most of its natural resources.
Sergey Shakhrai
in 1991 - advisor to Boris Yeltsin
On December 24, 1990, the Supreme Council of the RSFSR adopted a law according to which Russian authorities could suspend the effect of union acts “if they violate the sovereignty of the RSFSR.” It was also stipulated that all decisions of the authorities of the USSR would come into force on the territory of the Russian republic only after their ratification by its Supreme Council. At a referendum on March 17, 1991, the post of president of the republic was introduced in the RSFSR (Boris Yeltsin was elected on June 12, 1991). In May 1991, its own special service was created - the State Security Committee (KGB) of the RSFSR.
New Union Treaty
At the last, XXVIII Congress of the CPSU on July 2–13, 1990, USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev announced the need to sign a new Union Treaty. On December 3, 1990, the USSR Supreme Council supported the project proposed by Gorbachev. The document provided for a new concept of the USSR: each republic included in its composition received the status of a sovereign state. The allied authorities retained a narrow scope of powers: organizing defense and ensuring state security, developing and implementing foreign policy, economic development strategies, etc.
On December 17, 1990, at the IV Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev proposed “to hold a referendum throughout the country so that every citizen would speak for or against the Union of Sovereign States on a federal basis.” Nine of the 15 union republics took part in the vote on March 17, 1991: the RSFSR, the Ukrainian, Belarusian, Uzbek, Azerbaijan, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik and Turkmen SSR. The authorities of Armenia, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Estonia refused to hold a vote. 80% of citizens who had the right to do so took part in the referendum. 76.4% of voters were in favor of preserving the Union, 21.7% were against.
As a result of the plebiscite, a new draft of the Union Treaty was developed. On its basis, from April 23 to July 23, 1991, at the residence of the USSR President in Novo-Ogarevo, negotiations were held between Mikhail Gorbachev and the presidents of nine of the 15 union republics (RSFSR, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Kazakh, Uzbek, Azerbaijan, Tajik, Kyrgyz and Turkmen USSR) on the creation of the Union of Sovereign States. They were called the “Novo-Ogarevo process”. According to the agreement, the abbreviation “USSR” in the name of the new federation was to be retained, but stand for “Union of Soviet Sovereign Republics.” In July 1991, the negotiators approved the draft agreement as a whole and scheduled its signing for the time of the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR in September-October 1991.
On July 29–30, Mikhail Gorbachev held closed meetings with the leaders of the RSFSR and Kazakh SSR Boris Yeltsin and Nursultan Nazarbayev, during which he agreed to postpone the signing of the document to August 20. The decision was caused by fears that the USSR people's deputies would vote against the treaty, which envisaged the creation of a de facto confederal state in which most powers were transferred to the republics. Gorbachev also agreed to dismiss a number of senior leaders of the USSR who had a negative attitude towards the “Novo-Ogarevo process”, in particular, Vice-President of the USSR Gennady Yanaev, Prime Minister Valentin Pavlov and others.
On August 2, Gorbachev spoke on Central Television, where he stated that on August 20, the new Union Treaty would be signed by the RSFSR, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and the remaining republics would do this “at certain intervals.” The text of the treaty was published for public discussion only on August 16, 1991.
August putsch
On the night of August 18-19, a group of eight senior leaders of the USSR (Gennady Yanaev, Valentin Pavlov, Dmitry Yazov, Vladimir Kryuchkov, etc.) formed the State Committee for a State of Emergency (GKChP).
In order to prevent the signing of the Union Treaty, which, in their opinion, would lead to the collapse of the USSR, members of the State Emergency Committee tried to remove USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev from power and introduced a state of emergency in the country. However, the leaders of the State Emergency Committee did not dare to use force. On August 21, Vice President of the USSR Yanaev signed a decree dissolving the State Emergency Committee and invalidating all its decisions. On the same day, the act of canceling the orders of the State Emergency Committee was issued by the President of the RSFSR, Boris Yeltsin, and the prosecutor of the republic, Valentin Stepankov, issued an order to arrest its members.
Dismantling of government structures of the USSR
After the events of August 1991, the union republics, whose leaders participated in the negotiations in Novo-Ogarevo, declared their independence (August 24 - Ukraine, 30th - Azerbaijan, 31st - Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, the rest - in September-December 1991 G.). On August 23, 1991, President of the RSFSR Boris Yeltsin signed a decree “On the suspension of the activities of the Communist Party of the RSFSR”, all property of the CPSU and the Communist Party of the RSFSR in Russia was nationalized. On August 24, 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev dissolved the Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR.
On September 2, 1991, the Izvestia newspaper published a statement by the President of the USSR and senior leaders of 10 union republics. It spoke of the need to “prepare and sign by all willing republics a Treaty on the Union of Sovereign States” and to create union coordinating governing bodies for the “transition period.”
On September 2–5, 1991, the V Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR (the highest authority in the country) took place in Moscow. On the last day of the meetings, the law “On Bodies of State Power and Administration of the USSR in the Transitional Period” was adopted, according to which the Congress dissolved itself and all state power was transferred to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
As a temporary body of the highest union administration, “for the coordinated resolution of issues of domestic and foreign policy,” the State Council of the USSR was established, consisting of the President of the USSR and the heads of the RSFSR, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, Tajikistan, and Azerbaijan. At meetings of the State Council, discussions continued on the new Union Treaty, which in the end was never signed.
The law also liquidated the Cabinet of Ministers of the USSR and abolished the post of vice-president of the Soviet Union. The Interrepublican Economic Committee (IEC) of the USSR, headed by the former chairman of the government of the RSFSR Ivan Silaev, became the equivalent of the union government. The activities of the IEC on the territory of the RSFSR were terminated on December 19, 1991, its structures were finally liquidated on January 2, 1992.
On September 6, 1991, in contradiction with the current Constitution of the USSR and the law on the withdrawal of union republics from the Union, the State Council recognized the independence of the Baltic republics.
On October 18, 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev and the leaders of eight union republics (excluding Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Azerbaijan) signed the Treaty on the Economic Community of Sovereign States. The document recognized that “independent states” are “former subjects of the USSR”; assumed the division of the all-Union gold reserves, the Diamond and Monetary Fund; maintaining the ruble as a common currency, with the possibility of introducing national currencies; liquidation of the State Bank of the USSR, etc.
On October 22, 1991, a decree of the State Council of the USSR was issued on the abolition of the union KGB. On its basis, it was ordered to create the Central Intelligence Service (CSR) of the USSR (foreign intelligence, on the basis of the First Main Directorate), the Inter-Republican Security Service (internal security) and the Committee for the Protection of the State Border. The KGB of the union republics were transferred "to the exclusive jurisdiction of sovereign states." The all-Union intelligence service was finally liquidated on December 3, 1991.
On November 14, 1991, the State Council adopted a resolution on the liquidation of all ministries and other central government bodies of the USSR from December 1, 1991. On the same day, the heads of seven union republics (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, RSFSR, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) and the president USSR Mikhail Gorbachev agreed to sign a new Union Treaty on December 9, according to which the Union of Sovereign States would be formed as a “confederal democratic state.” Azerbaijan and Ukraine refused to join it.
Liquidation of the USSR and creation of the CIS
On December 1, a referendum on independence was held in Ukraine (90.32% of those who took part in the vote were in favor). On December 3, RSFSR President Boris Yeltsin announced recognition of this decision.
Even already in Viskuli, even two hours before the signing of what we signed, I did not feel that the USSR would be broken. I lived within the myth of the great Soviet empire. I understood that if there were nuclear weapons, no one would attack the USSR. And without such an attack, nothing will happen. I thought the transformation of the political system would happen much more smoothly
Stanislav Shushkevich
in 1991 - Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Belarusian SSR
On December 8, 1991, the leaders of the RSFSR, Ukraine and Belarus Boris Yeltsin, Leonid Kravchuk and Stanislav Shushkevich at the government residence of Viskuli (Belovezhskaya Pushcha, Belarus) signed an Agreement on the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the dissolution of the USSR. On December 10, the document was ratified by the Supreme Councils of Ukraine and Belarus. On December 12, a similar act was adopted by the Russian parliament. According to the document, the scope of joint activities of CIS members included: coordination of foreign policy activities; cooperation in the formation and development of a common economic space, pan-European and Eurasian markets, in the field of customs policy; cooperation in the field of environmental protection; migration policy issues; fight against organized crime.
On December 21, 1991, in Almaty (Kazakhstan), 11 leaders of the former Soviet republics signed a declaration on the goals and principles of the CIS, its foundations. The Declaration confirmed the Bialowieza Agreement, indicating that with the formation of the CIS, the USSR ceases to exist.
On December 25, 1991 at 19:00 Moscow time, Mikhail Gorbachev spoke live on Central Television and announced the termination of his activities as President of the USSR. On the same day, the state flag of the USSR was lowered from the flagpole of the Moscow Kremlin and the state flag of the Russian Federation was raised.
On December 26, 1991, the Council of Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted a declaration which stated that in connection with the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the USSR as a state and a subject of international law ceases to exist.
The collapse of the USSR, which resulted in the formation of 15 independent republics, is one of the main events of the 20th century.
After all, in a short period of time, one of the two superpowers suddenly ceased to exist. This radically changed the political and economic picture of the world.
In this article we will touch on the main reasons for the collapse of the USSR, and also consider its consequences.
By the way, if you like it at all, then we recommend reading it. Very short and informative.
Date of collapse of the USSR
The official date of the collapse of the USSR is December 26, 1991. It was then that the great empire ended its history.
Brief background
The formation of the Soviet Union as a state occurred in 1922 during the reign of. Then, under , the USSR turned into a superpower.
Moreover, during its existence its borders changed several times. This was due to the fact that the republics that were part of it had the right to secede from the Union.
However, the Soviet government constantly emphasized that the USSR was a friendly family consisting of different nations.
The USSR was led by the Communist Party, which controlled all government bodies.
The final decision about who should lead a particular republic always remained with the central leadership in.
Reasons for the collapse of the USSR
To answer this question, we must consider many factors that led to the collapse of the USSR.
It should be noted that some people accepted the collapse of the Soviet Union with joy and jubilation. This was explained by the fact that many wanted to gain independence and live according to their own laws.
For others, the collapse was a real shock and tragedy. For example, it was especially difficult for communists and people devoted to the ideas of the CPSU to believe what happened.
Let's look at the main reasons why the USSR collapsed:
- Autocracy of government and society in the state, as well as the fight against dissidents;
- Conflicts on ethnic grounds;
- The only correct ideology of the party, strict censorship, absence of political opposition;
- Economic deficit in relation to the production system;
- International collapse in oil prices;
- Many failures regarding the reform of the Soviet system;
- Global centralization of government agencies;
- Criticism of the introduction of Soviet troops into Afghanistan (1989).
It goes without saying that these are not all the reasons that led to the collapse of the USSR, but they can be considered key.
Perestroika of the USSR
In 1985, he became the new Secretary General of the USSR. He set a course for perestroika to change the ideological and political system.
Under his leadership, reforms began to be carried out aimed at achieving comprehensive democratization and abandoning the socialist system.
During Gorbachev's reign, many KGB documents were declassified, thanks to which many of the crimes of the previous government became known to the public. It was the so-called openness policy.
Glasnost led to the fact that Soviet citizens began to actively criticize the communist system and its leaders.
As a result, new political movements emerged that came up with different programs for the further development of the state.
Mikhail Gorbachev repeatedly came into conflict with Boris Yeltsin, who insisted on the RSFSR secession from the USSR.
Collapse of the USSR
The crisis and subsequent collapse of the USSR manifested themselves in different ways. In addition to the economic and political impasse, the state was faced with a sharp drop in the birth rate, as evidenced by statistics for 1989.
Store shelves were literally empty, and people were often unable to buy essential products.
Communist leadership in countries such as Poland, Czechoslovakia and Romania has been replaced by new democratic leaders.
Mass demonstrations and protests begin in one republic after another. In Moscow, people take to the streets demanding the overthrow of the government.
On March 10, 1991, the largest anti-government rally in the history of Soviet power took place on Manezhnaya Square in Moscow. Hundreds of thousands of people demanded Gorbachev's resignation. All this played into the hands of those who called themselves democrats. Their leader was Boris Yeltsin, who was gaining more and more popularity and respect from the people every day.
Parade of sovereignties
In February 1990, members of the CPSU Central Committee publicly announced the weakening of the monopoly on power. Within a month, the first elections were held, as a result of which the nationalists and liberals received the greatest support.
In the period 1990-1991, the so-called “parade of sovereignties” took place throughout the USSR. Ultimately, all the Union republics adopted the Declaration of Sovereignty, as a result of which the USSR ceased to exist.
The last president of the USSR
One of the main reasons for the collapse of the USSR was the reforms carried out by Mikhail Gorbachev in relation to Soviet society and system.
He himself came from a simple family. After graduating from the Faculty of Law of Moscow State University, he headed the Komsomol organization, and later became a member of the CPSU.
Gorbachev confidently moved up the career ladder, gaining authority among his colleagues.
In 1985, after the death of Konstantin Chernenko, he became Secretary General of the USSR. During his reign, Gorbachev introduced many radical reforms, many of which were poorly thought out.
Gorbachev's reform attempts
The so-called prohibition law, which included a complete or partial ban on alcoholic beverages, caused a big stir in the USSR.
In addition, Gorbachev announced the policy of glasnost, which we have already discussed, the introduction of self-financing, and the exchange of money.
In the foreign policy arena, he adhered to the “policy of new thinking,” which contributed to the establishment of international relations and the end of the “arms race.”
For these “achievements,” which led to the collapse of the USSR, Mikhail Sergeevich was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, while the country was in a terrible situation.
Mikhail Gorbachev Most Soviet citizens were critical of Gorbachev's actions because they did not see any practical benefit in his reforms.
1991 referendum
In March 1991, an all-Union referendum was held, in which about 80% of citizens surveyed voted for preserving the USSR.
In this regard, attempts were made to sign an agreement on the creation of a Union of Sovereign States. However, in the end, all these ideas remained only in words.
August putsch
In August 1991, a group of politicians close to Gorbachev formed the State Emergency Committee (GKChP).
This self-proclaimed authority, whose leader was Gennady Yanaev, tried to do everything possible to prevent the collapse of the USSR.
After the creation of the State Emergency Committee, Yeltsin acted as the main opposition member of the committee. He stated that the actions of the State Emergency Committee are nothing more than a coup d'etat.
Reasons for the coup
The main reason for the August putsch can be called the negative attitude of people towards Gorbachev’s policies.
His famous restructuring did not bring the expected results. Instead, the state experienced economic and political collapse, and the crime and unemployment rates exceeded all imaginable norms.
Then Mikhail Gorbachev came up with the idea of transforming the USSR into a Union of Sovereign States, which caused indignation among future putschists.
As soon as the president left the capital, activists immediately attempted an armed uprising. Ultimately, this came to nothing, and the putsch was crushed.
The significance of the GKChP putsch
As it turned out later, the putsch served as a catalyst for the collapse of the USSR. Every day the situation became more and more tense.
Soviet army tanks at the Spassky Gate after the coup on August 19, 1991 After the suppression of the putsch, Gorbachev resigned, as a result of which the CPSU collapsed, and all the union republics became independent.
The empire was replaced by 15 independent republics, and the main successor of the USSR was a new state - the Russian Federation.
Bialowieza Accords
On December 8, 1991, the Belovezhskaya Agreements were signed in Belarus. The heads of 3 republics put their signatures on the documents: Ukraine, Belarus and Belarus.
The agreements stated that the USSR would officially cease to exist, and in its place the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) would be formed.
In some republics, separatist sentiments began to emerge, actively supported by local media.
For example, in Ukraine, on December 1, 1991, a referendum was held, at which the question of the independence of the republic was raised.
Soon he publicly spoke out that Ukraine was abandoning the 1922 treaty, which spoke of the creation of the USSR.
In this regard, Boris Yeltsin began to strengthen his power in Russia even more actively.
Creation of the CIS and the final collapse of the USSR
Meanwhile, in Belarus, Stanislav Shushkevich became the new chairman of the Supreme Council. He was the initiator of a meeting of the heads of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, at which key political topics were raised.
In particular, the leaders of the countries tried to discuss the further course of history. The creation of the USSR was denounced, and instead a plan was developed for the formation of the CIS.
It is important to note that the Belovezhskaya Agreements became the will of the peoples of the former Soviet republics, and not the decision of 3 presidents.
The ratification of the agreements was approved by the governments of each of the three countries at the official level.
Conclusion
Thus, within just a few months, a huge superpower disintegrated.
What it was: an accidental collapse, a deliberate collapse or the natural end of an empire - history will show.
B. Yeltsin and M. Gorbachev Despite various criticisms of the USSR, during its existence the Soviet people managed to achieve unprecedented indicators in social and economic terms.
In addition, the state had enormous military potential and also achieved fantastic results in the space industry.
It's fair to say that many people still have fond memories of life in the Soviet Union.
Now you know all the main events associated with the collapse of the USSR. If you liked this article, share it on social networks. If you like it at all, subscribe to the site IinterestingFakty.org.
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Collapse of the USSR
At the end of 1991, the Soviet Union, one of the two largest powers in the world, ceased to exist. What led to the collapse of the USSR? How these events took place, not so distant, but had a huge impact on the further course of human history.
Reasons for the collapse of the USSR
Of course, such a large power could not collapse just like that. There were many reasons for the collapse of the USSR. The main one was the strong dissatisfaction of the overwhelming majority of the population with the existing regime. This dissatisfaction was of a socio-economic nature. Socially, people wanted freedom: Gorbachev’s perestroika, which initially raised expectations of change, did not live up to the people’s hopes. New slogans and ideas, new leaders, more courageous and radical (at least in words), found a much greater response in people's hearts than the actions of the existing government. In economic terms, monstrous fatigue has accumulated from constant shortages, queues, from the knowledge that there, in the distant capitalist West, people live much better. At that time, few people followed oil prices, the collapse of which was one of the reasons for the catastrophe in the economy. It seemed like change the system and everything would be fine. In addition, the Soviet Union was a multinational state, and at the time of crisis, national sentiments (as well as interethnic contradictions) manifested themselves especially clearly. But another important reason collapse of the USSR became the lust for power of the new leaders. The collapse of the country and the formation of several new ones allowed them to satisfy their ambitions, and therefore they took advantage of popular discontent and tore the Soviet Union into pieces. The public mind is quite easy to manipulate when people are angry. The people themselves went to the streets to rally and the new power-hungry, of course, could not help but take advantage of this. However, entering the realm of conjecture, one can assume that other countries actively tried to take advantage of the reasons that led to the collapse of the USSR. Unlike modern “orange-pink” revolutions, the collapse of the Soviet Union was not due to their political “technologies”, but they tried to grab all sorts of advantages for themselves by supporting certain individuals from among the “new leaders” in various ways.
Fall of communist regimes
Mikhail Sergeevich Gorbachev, who started perestroika, introduced such concepts as “glasnost” and “democracy” into use. In addition, he made a sharp rapprochement with our former enemies: Western countries. The foreign policy of the USSR changed radically: “new thinking” required qualitative changes. A number of friendly meetings were held with the President of the United States of America, Ronald Reagan. In an effort to gain a reputation as a democratic leader, Mikhail Gorbachev behaved differently on the world stage than his predecessors. Sensing weakness, “our new friends” sharply became more active in the Warsaw Pact countries and began to use tactics of displacing undesirable regimes from within, which they then repeatedly used, and which later became known as “color revolutions.” The pro-Western opposition received great support, but most importantly, the people were actively instilled with the idea that the current leaders were guilty of all sins and that the “movement towards democracy” would bring people freedom and prosperity. Such propaganda ultimately led not only to the fall of communist regimes in Eastern Europe, but also to the collapse of the USSR: without realizing it, Gorbachev was cutting off the branch on which he was sitting. Poland was the first to rebel, then Hungary, followed by Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria. The transition from communism in these countries took place peacefully, but in Romania Ceausescu decided to suppress the uprising by force. But times have changed: the troops went over to the side of the protesters, and the communist leader was shot. Among these events, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the unification of the two Germanys stand out. The division of the former fascist power was one of the results of the Great Patriotic War, and to unite them simply the will of the people was not enough; the consent of the Soviet Union was a necessary condition. Subsequently, after the collapse of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, who agreed to the reunification of Germany, claimed that in exchange he received a promise from Western countries about the non-entry of the countries of the former Warsaw Pact into NATO, but this was not legally formalized in any way. Therefore, our “friends” rejected the fact of such an agreement. This is just one example of the numerous mistakes of Soviet diplomacy during the collapse of the USSR. The fall of communist regimes in 1989 became a prototype of what would begin to happen in the Soviet Union itself less than a year later.
Parade of sovereignties
Sensing the weakness of the regime, local leaders, indulging liberal and nationalist sentiments among the people (perhaps even encouraging them), began to take more and more power into their own hands and declare the sovereignty of their territories. While this has not yet led to the collapse of the Soviet Union, it has increasingly undermined it, just as pests gradually turn a tree into dust from the inside until it collapses. The population's trust and respect for the central government fell, following declarations of sovereignty, the priority of local laws over federal ones was announced, and tax revenues to the union budget were reduced, since local leaders kept them for themselves. All this was a strong blow to the economy of the USSR, which was planned, not market, and largely depended on the clear interaction of territories in the field of transport, industry, etc. And now in many areas the situation was increasingly reminiscent of the fable of the swan, the crayfish and the pike, which increasingly weakened the country’s already weak economy. This inevitably affected the people, who blamed everything on the communists and who increasingly wanted a transition to capitalism. The parade of sovereignties began with the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, then Lithuania and Georgia followed suit. In 1990 and 1991, all union republics, including the RSFSR and some autonomous republics, declared their sovereignty. For leaders, the word “sovereignty” was synonymous with the word “power”; for ordinary people, it was synonymous with the word “freedom”. The overthrow of the communist regime and collapse of the USSR were approaching...
Referendum on preserving the USSR
An attempt was made to preserve the Soviet Union. In order to rely on broad sections of the population, the authorities offered the people to give the old state a renewed look. They seduced people with promises that the Soviet Union in a “new package” would be better than the old one and held a referendum on preserving the USSR in an updated form, which took place in March 1991. Three quarters (76%) of the population were in favor of maintaining the state, which was supposed to stop collapse of the USSR, preparation of the draft of a new Union Treaty began, the post of President of the USSR was introduced, which, naturally, became Mikhail Gorbachev. But when was this opinion of the people seriously taken into account in big games? Although the Union did not collapse, and the referendum was an all-Union one, some local “kings” (namely Georgian, Armenian, Moldavian and three Baltic) sabotaged the vote in their republics. And in the RSFSR, on June 12, 1991, elections for the President of Russia took place, which were won by Boris Yeltsin, one of Gorbachev’s opponents.
The August 1991 coup and the State Emergency Committee
However, Soviet party functionaries were not going to sit idly by and watch the collapse of the USSR, and, consequently, the deprivation of their power. Taking advantage of the absence of Gorbachev, who was on vacation in Faros, Crimea (by the way, whether he knew or not, whether the President of the USSR himself participated or did not participate in the putsch, there are different opinions), they staged a coup d'état with the declared goal of preserving the unity of the Soviet Union. Subsequently, it received the name of the August putsch. The conspirators created the State Committee for a State of Emergency, and put Gennady Yanaev at the head of the USSR. In the memory of the Soviet people, the August putsch was remembered primarily for the round-the-clock showing of “Swan Lake” on TV, as well as for the unprecedented popular unity in overthrowing the “new government.” The putschists had no chance. Their success was associated with a return to earlier times, so the protest sentiments were too strong. The resistance was led by Boris Yeltsin. This was his finest hour. In three days, the State Emergency Committee was overthrown, and the legitimate President of the country was released. The country rejoiced. But Yeltsin was not the kind of person to pull chestnuts out of the fire for Gorbachev. Gradually he took more and more powers. And other leaders saw a clear weakening of central power. By the end of the year, all republics (except the Russian Federation) declared their independence and secession from the Soviet Union. The collapse of the USSR was inevitable.
Bialowieza Accords
In December of the same year, a meeting was held between Yeltsin, Kravchuk and Shushkevich (at that time - the Presidents of Russia, Ukraine and the Chairman of the Supreme Council of Belarus), at which the liquidation of the Soviet Union was announced and a decision was made to create the Union of Independent States (CIS). It was a strong blow. Gorbachev was indignant, but there was nothing he could do. On December 21, in the capital of Kazakhstan, Almaty, all other union republics, except the Baltic and Georgia, joined the CIS.
Date of collapse of the USSR
On December 25, 1991, the out-of-work Gorbachev announced his resignation as president “for reasons of principle” (what else could he do?) and handed over control of the “nuclear suitcase” to Yeltsin. The next day, December 26, the upper house of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted declaration No. 142-N, which stated the termination of the existence of the state of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In addition, a number of administrative institutions of the former Soviet Union were liquidated. This day is legally considered the date of the collapse of the USSR.
Thus occurred the liquidation of one of the largest and most powerful powers in history, due both to the “help of Western friends” and to the internal incapacity of the existing Soviet system.
