Unit 4-1980-91 collapse of USSR

Question 1

What was Detente and what were the reasons for it?

Answer 1

• Was a period of improvement in relations between the East and West
• Reasons were a fear of War , as the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 highlighted the dangers of superpower confrontation
• Soviet economic problems, to resolve this they had to divert their spending on the military to the economy instead meaning they would not be able to keep up with the arms race, living standards were extremely poor in the USSR, and detente would enable them to fix this
• US also wanted to reduce military spending after a lot of income had been used at the humiliation of the US in the vietnam war
• Détente helped to ease Cold War tensions and reduced the immediate threat of nuclear confrontation through arms control agreements

Question 2

What were the achievements of detente ?

Answer 2

• SALT I in 1972, negotiated under Nixon and Brezhnev which marked the first time major arms control agreement between the superpowers and it aimed to stabilize the arms race, ABM treaty was signed which limited the amount of ABM’s each side could use with the goal to maintain MAD, However, it did not address newer systems like (MIRVs), which allowed multiple warheads on a single missile.
• SALT II, 1979 placed stricter limits on nuclear weapons systems, Limited the deployment of MIRV-equipped missiles, aimed to limit a range of different nuclear weapons however due to the Soviet Invasion in Afghanistan 1979 the agreement was not ratified.
• Helsinki Agreements(1975), a major diplomatic agreement, 35 nations signed agreement emphasizing human rights such as the reunification of families divided by international borders, which the Soviets agreed to. The Helsinki Accords improved collaboration, communication, and co-operation between the two blocs.

Question 3

What was Ostpolitik?

Answer 3

• Willy Brandt (FDR leader), aim of Ostpolitik was to defuse tensions between East and West and leave door open for a potential German re unification
• FRG signed the non proliferation treaty 1969 which reduced tensions between west germany and the USSR
• The Moscow Treaty 1970 signed which was Brandt and Brezhnev and improved relations
• The Basic Treaty 1972, West Germany and East Germany recognized each other as separate states and established diplomatic relations, paving the way for both to join the United Nations in 1973.
• Ostpolitik squashed the Hallstein Doctrine 1955 where the FRG would cut off diplomatic relations with any state the recognized the GDR

Question 4

What happened in Romania that contributed to the collapse of USSR?

Answer 4

• Romania was lead by Ceausescu and he was not fully prepared to accept the policy of the USSR
• Romania suffered from a stagnant economy, stagnant leadership, and poor living standards.
• living standards.
• Ceausescu’s censorship, repression, and policies (such as systemization) produced discontent and undeveloped, latent opposition.
• Led to Ceausescu receiving public opposition in a rally resulting in him and his wife having to flee via helicopter which highlights the extent of the lack of support for the gerontocracy within Romania
• Created discontent and opposition

Question 5

What were Gorbachev’s new Policies ?

Answer 5

• Perestroika, which was restructuring the economy, which freed political prisoners and elections could be held
• Glasnost, which is a policy of openness that encouraged the population to put new ideas forward, this led to the end of censorship , media was allowed and it encouraged people to put forward new ideas
• These policies led to a more critical approach towards communism and this encouraged reformers to push for further liberalisation
• adopted a policy of non-intervention in Eastern Europe, signaling the end of the Brezhnev Doctrine, which had justified Soviet military interventions to maintain communist regimes.

Question 6

What were the Reagan - Gorbachev summits?

Answer 6

• Geneva Summit in 1985, no agreement made due to fears of MAD
• Reykjavik conference in 1986, Didn’t produce any arms control agreements despite both Reagan and Gorbachev wanting agreements as Reagan was unwilling to compromise his SDI, however, was successful in improving the relations between the USSR and US as they were more willing to collaborate with one another now
• Washington conference 1987- Signed the Inter-mediate Range Nuclear forces Agreement (INF) abolishing an entire category of nuclear weapons. Marked the first stage of failure of the arms race.

Question 7

How did communism fall in Poland?

Answer 7

• Reforms were wanted by Poles due to how poor the living standards were in Poland under the communist regime.
• A new wave of strikes was sparked by food prices in Poland increasing by a further 40%.
• Solidarity movement defeated the Polish Communist Party by a landslide and secured 99 out 100 senatorial seats in the 1989 elections

Question 8

How did communism fall in Eastern Germany ?

Answer 8

• Due to East Germany being an artificial state, which was reliant on support from the USSR and its existence was contingent on Cold War tensions, the decline in Cold War tensions and Gorbachev no longer following the Brezhnev Doctrine (1968) removed the necessity of a divided Germany to persist.

In 1989, 125,000 East Germans crossed into the west via Hungary (hole in the Iron Curtain) in one day alone.

Honecker replaced by Krenz in 1989 (Krenz more open to reform).

Krenz opened the Berlin Wall in 1989 was symbolic of the reunification of Germany.

GDR voted out existence after the elections in 1990. (FRG controlled the unified Germany).

Question 9

How did Reagans policies lead to collapse of USSR?

Answer 9

• Regan increased US military spending by a third, worsening the economic problems for the USSR due to Soviet attempts to keep up with the US to not fall behind in the arms race.

Regan undermined the USSR via spending $35-40 billion dollars on financing the mujahideen in Afghanistan against the USSR, worsening the economic situation in the USSR.
- Regan was unwilling to compromise his SDI in agreements which led the USSR to continue to direct funds towards the arms race and away from improving the economy.

Question 10

What happened in coup of 1991?

Answer 10

• Communist hardliners wanted to overthrow Gorbachev due to their believing Gorbachev’s reforms were guiding the USSR in the wrong direction
• The Coup was sparked following the Union Treaty 1991 which removed greater powers away from the central government leading to greater discontent among the KGB (USSR’s Secret Police) and the military who were already losing favour for Gorbachev following the soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan 1989 weakening the military’s prestige in the bloc.
  The Coups organizers, who were known as the Gang of 8, used the KGB (secret police) and the military.
• Yeltsin was the key figure in putting down the coup hence gaining popularity in the USSR for being a man of the people. E.g. He stood on a tank and rallied mass opposition showing his support for the resistors.
  When Gorbachev returned support was greater for Yeltsin than it was for him, leading Gorbachev to resign on Christmas Day 1991.
• Gorbachev’s resignation in 1991 was a significant factor in the fall of Soviet Communism as Gorbachev held the last link to the old communist regime and the communist political elite, as although he introduced capitalist elements (like privatization) to the USSR, via perestroika, he was still part of the Communist Party unlike Yeltsin.

Question 11

What was Russia like under Yeltsin?

Answer 11

• He faced problems such as a slowing down of Perestroika and Glasnost , poor living standards and a failed economy
• When Yeltsin came to power he introduced ambitious economic reforms, including the end of government price subsidies and the introduction of shock therapy, which led to an increase in inflation, greater poverty, increased government corruption and a larger wealth divide in the USSR.
  Shock therapy = The sudden transition from a command economy to a market economy.
• USSR didn’t have a strong enough political system to deal with the rampant economic changes.
  Yeltsin’s rule led to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the communist ideology in Eastern Europe which caused a VACUUM IN IDEOLOGY filled with increased nationalism. and increased nationalism was bad because it caused civil wars in yugoslavia and caused a rise in ethnic tensions

Question 12

What happened in Chechyna and why is it significant ?

Answer 12

• Chechnya wanted to seek its independence after the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe.
  Due to Chechnya traditionally always being a part of Russia but primary due to Yeltsin’s interest in oil in the region, Yeltsin didn’t want Chechnya to be independent.
  Chechnya asserted independence in 1994, leading to Yeltsin ordering the Invasion of the region.
  Invasion caused around 70,00 casualties.
  The Invasion showed that Russia’s military power was no longer the strength it used to be as Chechen’s successfully resisted the Russian Army for several weeks before Russia could take control of the capital.
  Additionally, the fragility of the Russian Army was shown via Chechen’s ability to take control of the capital again in 1996 which forced Yeltsin into making a peace settlement with Chechnya.