The end of the Soviet Union Why did the "evil empire" collapse?

Thirty years ago, the Soviet Union ceased to exist, not because of Western pressure or economic hardship, but because of Mikhail Gorbachev's disastrous reformist vision.

The writer Vladislav Zubok says - in a report published by the American Wall Street Journal (WSJ) - that starting from the date of December 25, 1991, the existence of the Soviet Union officially ended, and President Mikhail Gorbachev stepped down, leaving the position to his successor, Boris Yeltsin, who raised the flag of the Russian Federation over a building The Kremlin.

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At that time, many Americans believed that American policies contributed to the destruction of this "evil empire", and that the economic and military problems and rebellions within the republics of the Union were only a secondary cause, but the writer asserts that these explanations, which were common about the collapse of the Soviet Union, were later proven It lacks precision.

The military commitments of this union at that time remained bearable, the army was in good condition after the withdrawal from Afghanistan and Eastern Europe, and the military industries were effective and cost-effective compared to the West.

As for the drop in oil prices at that time, it did not represent an articulated shock for this union, given that the oil and gas pipelines destined for Western Europe remained a real gain despite all the difficulties.

Gorbachev's reforms

The writer adds that the pressures imposed by the West and prompted the Soviet leadership to initiate reforms in the communist system, were also not the direct cause of the collapse.

Those who lived through the Soviet Union in its last years after the end of the Stalin era, expected this system to produce young leaders who would achieve the required reforms, but these reforms could have been carried out in the Chinese way, perhaps, without compromising the nature of the state.

Instead, history presents us with Gorbachev, who disintegrated the union only five years after coming to power.

Gorbachev viewed the idea of ​​reforming the Soviet system as an ideal experiment, and he worked to change everything that Stalin had done, and tried to combine socialism and democracy.

However, his efforts to decentralize the economy, granting regional governments a degree of freedom, and offering privileges to government company managers instead of boosting productivity and enthusiasm, opened the door for the exploiters to prey on the economy without providing any production.

The writer adds that the political decentralization that Gorbachev worked on also led to counterproductive results, as he forced the political bureau of the ruling party and regional leaders to pass political powers to popular councils called soviets, and he hoped that these councils would represent a school for democracy, but in fact they were This has fueled separatist, nationalist and populist strife, which has created a situation that is difficult to control.

On the financial front, Gorbachev also worked on the transition to democracy, and made reforms that allow the creation of private banks and the free printing of the ruble. These measures led to rising inflation, the disappearance of goods from store shelves, people losing the value of their financial savings, and the collapse of long-fragile Soviet financial balances.

This tragic spiral could have been avoided - according to the author - had the Kremlin pursued these reforms more cautiously and pragmatically, as it could have pushed towards market liberalization, but without dismantling the ruling dictatorial regime, which is what China did. But the method adopted by Gorbachev opened the door to a torrent of problems, and widespread resentment and rebellion.

Detachment and explosion

The writer adds that by the time the Soviet Union was suffering defeat on its outskirts, the Baltic republics were seeking independence, and there was an explosion in the Caucasus.

As for Russia, which represents the heart of this union, it decided to leave it, taking with it all the oil, gas, gold and diamonds, along with the capital, Moscow, and even the Kremlin. Yeltsin became the first president in Russian history in June 1991, and his separatist policy became a decisive factor that led to the dismantling of the Soviet Union. At the same time, Gorbachev's popularity fell below 20%, after most Russians considered him responsible for the deterioration in the standard of living.

In August 1991, Gorbachev agreed to grant Russia broad powers under Yeltsin's leadership, on the condition that it remain part of the no longer communist union.

This new union was weakened by the secession of the Baltic republics, the dominance of Russia, and Ukraine enjoying half-independence. Therefore, Gorbachev's ministers staged a coup in order to abort this agreement, but their attempt eventually led to the humiliating surrender of the KGB, the army, and the police to Yeltsin and his supporters.

Immediately after that, Yeltsin seized power and overthrew Gorbachev, banning the Communist Party and dissolving the central government, then gaining control of the nuclear arsenal and currency printing. Thus, it was the internal quarrels in Moscow that led to the dismantling of the Soviet Union, not the wave of pressures and liberal ideas.