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Russia A-LEVEL History! Lenin to Yeltsin 1917-91 > FALL OF THE USSR > Flashcards

FALL OF THE USSR Flashcards

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1
Q

FOUR reasons for fall of the USSR

A

1) Endemic economic weakness, and failure of reforms
2) failure to reform the government and party - Gorbachev
3) nationalist resurgence
4) role of Yeltsin

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2
Q

How many republics was the USSR comprised of?

A

15 => supranational organisation rather than a country governed by the Communist Party

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3
Q

Why did centralisation weaken the Soviet Union? (LT economic issues)

A
  • in efficiency was rife
  • central control too general, not precise so lack of coordination (fertiliser arrive at wrong time/factories receive wrong grade materials)
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4
Q

Long term problems in industry weakening the Soviet Union:

A
  • soviet economy didn’t have incentives for workers = lower productivity than west
  • GOSPLAN set targets for QUANTITY not QUALITY = useless goods and wasted materials
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5
Q

Long term issues in agriculture weakening the Soviet Union:

A
  • needed a greater proportion of the population working on it than USA
  • USA farms were 6 times more effective
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6
Q

Long term infrastructure issues that weakened the Soviet Union (economy)?

A
  • consistently inadequate
  • transport system never modernised (food transportation awful)
  • lack of modern storage facilities (food wasted - grain rot)
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7
Q

How did excessive military expenditure weaken the Soviet Union (economy)?

A
  • 1965 - 1985 GDP on defence 12% -> 17%
  • greater burden on economy than US military expenditure (6%)
  • starved other areas of the economy (no investment in modernising infrastructure/farming)
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8
Q

Was long term economic problems significant to decline of the USSR?

A
  • 1985 = Soviet economy stops growing
  • some historians argue there’s no real crisis with this as the soviet economy had been declining/stagnating for years
  • USSR economy therefore could have continued for decades, they undermined the USSR but were not the long term cause of the fall
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9
Q

Reasons gorbachevs economic reforms made the fall of the USSR more likely?

A
  • Gorbachev reforms failed because they undermined the existing (working but stagnant) system
  • Gorbachevs reforms didn’t have time to develop, because he kept changing his approach
  • the failure of Gorbachevs economy was inevitable because the soviet economy couldn’t be saved
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10
Q

The three stages of Gorbachevs economic policy:

A

1) Rationalisation (trying to improve existing command economy) 85-86
2) Reform (introducing some market measures into the command economy - socialist - capitalist coalition economy) 86-90
3) Transformation (abandonment of the command economy, introduce full market economy) 90-91

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11
Q

Rationalisation 1985-86

A
  • didn’t fundamentally alter the economy
  • continued Andropovs anti-alcohol campaign
  • state production of alcohol cut by half!
  • introduced USKORENIE (acceleration) - modernising the economy
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12
Q

USKORENIE

A

Acceleration - introduced in Rationalisation 1985-86
- investments in modernising the economy
- funded by Western Loans
- investments in energy production - not investing in high tech machines

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13
Q

Early failures of Gorbachevs economic reform:

A
  • Anti alcohol campaign fails - Russians but alcohol off black markets - still turn up to work drunk AND govt makes less out of alcohol sales
  • alcohol revenue drops by 67 billion roubles (9%GDP) - abandoned campaign in 1988
  • Acceleration USKORENIE fails die to being funded by western govts
  • ignored experts and invested in energy production
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14
Q

Issues why USKORENIE failed:

A
  • funded by western governments - debt rose from 18.1 billion to 27.2 billion in 7 years
  • debt caused inflation
  • Gorbachev ignored expert advice and invested in energy production, not high tech machines - no growth of economy
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15
Q

Reform 1987-90

A
  • experiments with market reforms to play bigger role in economy
  • law on individual economic activity
  • law on state enterprises
  • law on cooperatives
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16
Q

Law on individual economic activity

A

Nov 1986:
Individuals can now make money on small scale jobs:
Tutoring/repairs/cleaning

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17
Q

Law on state enterprises

A

June 1987
- factory management gets more power
- can set prices on goods they produce

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18
Q

Law on cooperatives

A

May 1988
- able to set up large scale cooperatives
- functioned like large companies

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19
Q

Why did market reform fail?

A
  • created growing economic chaos
  • undermined central planning (what little good it was doing - regulation)(
  • failed to create market alternative
  • increased shortages ad no effective way of distributing goods
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20
Q

Political consequences of Gorbachevs (economic) Reform period:

A
  • economic issues lead to political issues
  • GDP shrinks by 4% in 4 years ending in 1990
  • prices rising
  • communist party members becoming rich as they seize economic assets being privatised
  • decline in support for communist party
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21
Q

When did Gorbachev abandon attempts to save the command economy?

A

1990, after ‘Restructuring’ period

22
Q

Why did Gorbachev have political issues abandoning the command economy, and replacing it with a market economy?

A
  • hardliners in the party wanted to preserve the command economy and soviet political system
  • radicals wanted to speed up reform
23
Q

When was gorbachevs ‘transformation period’?

A
  • 1990-91
  • transformation of the command economy into a market economy in less than 2 years
24
Q

Details of the transformation period:

A
  • Gorbachev and Yeltsin commissioned Shatalin and Yavlinsky to create a plan (leading economists)
  • 500 day programme in 1990
  • widespread privatisation complete marketisation

Gorbachev backed down from the 500 day program after pressure from hardliners - Transformation would happen at slower race

25
Q

What were the final reforms of Gorbachev in Transformation?

A
  • 1991 = private property introduced
  • trading stocks and shares allowed
26
Q

How did the economy continue to decline after final economic reforms?

A
  • oil production falls by 9%
  • steel and tractor production by 12%
  • 1991 summer the Soviet govt and Republican govts are bankrupt
  • Yeltsin then introduces FULL MARKETISATION in October
27
Q

Different interpretations about economics and the fall of the USSR

A
  • Gorbachevs reforms = too radical and cause economic chaos! Which caused political crisis which lead to the fall
  • the Soviet economy was bound to disintegrate due to long term weakness, reforming it just sped up the disintegration
  • Gorbachevs reforms could have been successful (look at china and turning to full marketisation), mistake was to introduce political and economic reforms at the same time - citizens could use their newfound right to protest and go against the govt!
28
Q

Gorbachevs political goals

A
  • wanted DEMOCRACY for working people (Lenin’s single-party state was temporary and wanted a new highly democratic society)
  • Party members under Brezhnev became corrupt and inefficient
  • greater freedom of speech - civilians help to build a communist society
  • decrease the cynicism within soviet people - decrease the view that communists were corrupt
29
Q

Why was political reform dangerous?

A

If Gorbachev introduced any forum to undermine the communist party, the stability of the USSR would be threatened.

The communist party was the only thing holding the USSR together so undermining the Communists undermined the USSR

30
Q

Early political reforms:

A
  • open up debate within the party
  • allow more freedom of expression for intellectuals
  • more public access to information
31
Q

Purging the party

A
  • purge Brezhnev senior officials
  • become filled with Brezhnev allies - grown old and stagnant
  • appointed new generation of ministers who favoured reform

ISSUE: most newly appointed ministers were RUSSIAN - even in the republics (‘Russian takeover’

32
Q

Glasnost

A

1986-88
“Openness”
- government would ‘admit the truth’, more information about history and economics available
- liberalisation of the media

33
Q

Examples of Glasnost in action:

A

1986-88
- Yakovlev = responsible for soviet media and appointing radical editors
- 1988 = press published Lenin and Marx criticisms
- 1988 onwards citizens allowed to listen to foreign broadcasts
- 1988 = scale of economic issues revealed

34
Q

Effects of the Glasnost reforms:

A

Weakened the communist party:
- divided the party - hardliners disliked the reforms as they would end party privilege
- Factions emerged: Hardliners, Moderates, Radicals
- citizens lost faith in govt
- free-media allows criticism from opponents = undermines the party

35
Q

When did democratisation begin?

A

1988

36
Q

1988 democratisation reform:

A

19th party congress of 1988 introduces reforms.
- authorised multi-candidate elections to the Soviets
- choose between communist candidates - Radical or Moderate

37
Q

First multi-candidate election:

A

March 1989:
- high ranking communists defeated, including 5 CC members
- radicals did well
- Yeltsin won 89% vote in Moscow

38
Q

Republic elections 1990

A

1990
Weakened the Communist party:
- Moscow - 85% of vote won by ‘Democratic Russia’
- Leningrad - 80% of sets by Democratic Elections 90 = anti communist group

39
Q

Multi-candidate elections Gorbachevs expectations vs reality:

A
  • democratisation woulds strengthen the radicals in the Communist Party (help him pass radical reform)
  • in actuality it weakened the whole party, elections increased authority of anti-party and nationalist groups
40
Q

IDRG - inter-regional-deputies group

A

After the 1989 first multiple-candidate election:
- formed in 1989 by Yeltsin and Sakharov
- opposition group to the communists

41
Q

Consequences of the new elections:

A
  • Nationalists who wanted independence used it to campaign
  • Yeltsin emerged as popular figure and RIVAL to Gorbachev (Yeltsins idea of replacing USSR with confederation of independent states peopular with nationalists so threat to the UNION!)
  • Inter-Regional Deputies Group first anti-communist organised group
42
Q

What was constitutional reform introduced for?

A
  • Gorbachev had lost control in the political and economic situation
  • so he tried to introduce constitutional reform to give himself new powers like president of the USSR
43
Q

Gorbachevs Presidency

A
  • appointed by the Congress of People’s Deputies
  • being appointed president should give him new authority
  • given emergency powers for 18 months to deal with economic and republics crisis
  • BUT he lacked legitimacy - he wasn’t elected so power was unstable
44
Q

How did the purges lead to resurgence of nationalism?

A
  • purges of Brezhnev officials due to corruption
  • Brezhnev encouraged recruitment of locals in each republic
  • Gorbachev replaced officials with his own (mostly Russian) supporters
  • Gorbachevs politburo only had one member who was non Russian in it
  • take over of Russians - sparks resentment in the republics in the USSR
45
Q

Economic issues in the republics leading to nationalism:

A

Acceleration caused economic decline
- the economic decline coincided with take over of Russian officials after the purges
- in the republics the blame was placed on Russian leaders for economic issues - lead to growing nationalism

46
Q

Glasnost leading to increased nationalism:

A
  • exposed terror against minority groups under Stalin
  • showed how much higher western standards of living are compared to life in the USSR - showed USSR didn’t benefit the republics
  • nationalist groups could publish materials and spread ideas to demand greater autonomy
47
Q

Growing unrest in the republics

A
  • 1988 nationalist protests in Karabakh, Azerbaijan - Armenian nationalists vs Azerbaijani lead to riots
  • 1989 Uzbeks massacred the Muslim minority of Meskhetians. Soviet authorities were unable to restore peace or negotiate compromise - meaning loss of faith in the incapable soviet government
  • 1989 Georgians protest on the rights of Abkhazian minority. Soviet forces killed 19 trying to restore order by force ‘Tbilisi massacre’
  • Russian nationalism - CHernobyl explosion damages environment- wanted to protect the environment from the communists
  • 1988 ‘popular fronts’ emerge in the baltic states - dedicated movements for gaining independence
48
Q

Consequences of growing nationalism:

A
  • weakened the USSR
  • demonstrated weakened support in many areas of the USSR
  • party leadership couldn’t win: did too little to prevent violence OR overstepped by causing massacre in other areas
  • so party popularity dwindled
49
Q

The Sinatra Doctrine - 1989

A

1989
- Gorbachev renounces the USSRs right to intervene in affairs of other socialist countries (satelite states)
- argued all countries could find their own way to socialism
- allowed greater freedom for Eastern European countries

50
Q

What did the Sinatra Doctrine lead to?

A
  • revolutions in the satelite states in Eastern Europe
  • destruction of the Berlin Wall 1989 (nov 9) symbolised the end of Soviet control in Eastern Europe
    Inspired nationalists in the republics that they could do the same
51
Q

How did democratisation impact nationalism and then the fall of the USSR?

A
  • nationalist groups could organise, win elections and appeal for independence
  • gained majorities in parliaments after 1990 elections
  • elections lead to major challenges to the USSRs power
  • Yeltsin declares in may 1990 that Russian laws are superior to soviet laws - Russia had a degree of independent from the USSR

Russia A-LEVEL History! Lenin to Yeltsin 1917-91 (19 decks)

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