Gorbachev Resigns and the Soviet Union Dissolves

Gorbachev Resigns and the Soviet Union Dissolves

Relating to the Cold War, that is the struggle between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics that began shortly after World War II when the two superpowers began to compete for political, military, and economic domination of the world after the defeat of Germany, Japan, and Italy in the war. This struggle came to be known as the Cold War because the invention of nuclear weapons forced the two countries and their closest allies to refrain from open warfare, since those weapons would have destroyed themselves and the rest of the world. Even though there were a handful of military confrontations, such as the Korean War, the Cuban missle crisis, and the Vietnam War, overall the Cold War was a stalemate for many decades.

By the 1980s, however, the Soviet Union was beginning to disintegrate as was the threat of the Cold War. Mikhail Gorbachev, elected as president in 1988, began to introduce glasnost, “openness,” and perestroika, “reconstruction,” which were political and economic reforms, into the stagnating totalitarian state that previously had a strict and centralized communist system. The result was a release of pent-up discontent that had been suppressed since the Russian Revolution of 1917 which had created the Soviet state in the first place. Within the Soviet empire, Boris Yeltsin became the head of the Russian Republic, by far the largest of the Soviet states. On June 12, 1991, he became the first democratically elected President of Russia.

Alarmed at the prospect of a breakup of the Soviet Union into its constituent states, on August 19 Soviet military leaders tried to depose Gorbachev. They held him in captivity for several days, but were reluctant to use force to suppress the resulting popular outrage and mass demonstrations in the streets of the Soviet capital of Moscow, fanned in large part by Yeltsin. The coup leaders caved in on August 21, permitting Gorbachev to return, and after that the real power in the Soviet Union lay with President Boris Yeltsin.

Although Gorbachev was still technically Yeltsin's superior, the Soviet military and bureaucracy began to transition to the Russian government under Yeltsin's authority and the outlying nations of the Soviet regime like Lithuania and Ukraine began to declare independence. The old Soviet states were organized by Yeltsin into a loose confederation known as the Commonwealth of Independent States. Yeltsin also began to dismantle the Communist Party apparatus that had existed for over 70 years. On December 25, 1991, Gorbachev announced his resignation and thus officially declared the end of the Soviet Union, which had already been reduced to a mere shell of its former self. Here is the text of his historic resignation speech:

Dear fellow countrymen, compatriots. Due to the situation which has evolved as a result of the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, I hereby discontinue my activities at the post of President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

I am making this decision out of considerations based on principle. I have firmly stood for independence, self-rule of nations, for the sovereignty of the republics, but at the same time for preservation of the union state, the unity of the country.

Events went a different way. The policy prevailed of dismembering this country and disuniting the state, with which I cannot agree. And after the Alma-Ata meeting and the decisions taken there, my position on this matter has not changed.

Besides, it is my conviction that decisions of this caliber should have been made on the basis of popular will.

However, I will do all I can to ensure that the agreements that were signed there lead toward real concord in society and facilitate the exit out of this crisis and the process of reform.

Addressing you for the last time in the capacity of President of the U.S.S.R., I consider it necessary to express my evaluation of the road we have traveled since 1985, especially as there are a lot of contradictory, superficial and subjective judgments on that matter.

Fate had it that when I found myself at the head of the state, it was already clear that all was not well in the country. We had a lot of everything: land, oil and gas, other natural resources, and there was intellect and talent in abundance. Yet we lived much worse than developed countries and keep falling behind them more and more. The reason was obvious even then. This country was suffocating in the shackles of the bureaucratic command system, doomed to serve ideology and bear the terrible burden of the arms race. It had reached the limit of its possibilities. All attempts at partial reform, and there had been many, had suffered defeat, one after another. We could not go on living like that.

Everything had to be changed radically. That is why not once, not once, have I regretted that I did not take advantage of the post of [Communist Party] general secretary to rule as czar for several years. I considered it irresponsible and amoral. I realized that to start reforms of such a scale in a society such as ours was a most difficult and even a risky thing. But even now, I am convinced that the democratic reform that we launched in the spring of 1985 was historically correct.

The process of renovating this country and radical changes in the world community turned out to be far more complicated than could be expected. However, what has been done ought to be given its due. This society acquired freedom, liberated itself politically and spiritually, and this is the foremost achievement, which we have not yet understood completely, because we have not learned to use freedom.

However, work of historic significance has been accomplished. The totalitarian system that deprived the country of an opportunity to become successful and prosperous long ago has been eliminated. A breakthrough has been achieved on the way to democratic changes. Free elections, freedom of the press, religious freedoms, representative organs of power, a multiparty system became a reality. Human rights are recognized as the supreme principle.

Movement has been started toward a multitier economy, and the equality of all forms of ownership is being established. Within the framework of land reform, peasantry began to re-emerge as a class. Farmers have appeared, billions of hectares of land are being given to urbanites and rural residents alike. Economic freedom of the producer has been legalized, and entrepreneurship, shareholding, privatization are gaining momentum. In turning the economy toward a market, it is important to remember that all this is done for the sake of the individual. At this difficult time, all should be done for his social protection, especially for senior citizens and children.

We live in a new world. The Cold War has ended, the arms race has stopped, as has the insane militarization that mutilated our economy, public psyche and morals. The threat of world war has been removed. Once again I want to stress that on my part everything was done during the transition period to preserve reliable control of the nuclear weapons.

We opened ourselves to the rest of the world, abandoned the practices of interfering in others' internal affairs and using troops outside this country, and we were reciprocated with trust, solidarity and respect. We have become one of the main foundations for the transformation of modern civilization on peaceful democratic grounds.

The nations and the peoples of this country gained real freedom of self-determination. The search for a democratic reformation of the multinational state brought us to the threshold of concluding a new union treaty. All these changes demanded immense strain. They were carried out with sharp struggle, with growing resistance from the old, the obsolete forces: the former party-state structures, the economic elite, as well as our habits, ideological superstitions, the psychology of sponging and leveling everyone out.

They stumbled on our intolerance, low level of political culture, fear of change. That is why we lost so much time. The old system collapsed before the new one had time to begin working, and the crisis in the society became even more acute. I am aware of the dissatisfaction with the present hard situation, of the sharp criticism of authorities at all levels including my personal activities.

But once again I'd like to stress: radical changes in such a vast country, and a country with such a heritage, cannot pass painlessly without difficulties and shake-up. The August coup brought the overall crisis to its ultimate limit. The most dangerous thing about the crisis is the collapse of statehood. And today I am worried by our people's loss of the citizenship of a great country. The consequences may turn out to be very hard for everyone.

I think it is vitally important to preserve the democratic achievements of the last years. They have been paid for by the suffering of our whole history, our tragic experience. They must not be given up under any circumstances or any pretext, otherwise all our hopes for the better will be buried. I am telling you all this honestly and straightforwardly because this is my moral duty. Today I'd like to express my gratitude to all citizens who supported the policy of renovating the country, got involved in the implementation of the democratic reforms. I am grateful to statesmen, public and political figures, millions of people abroad, those who understood our intentions, gave their support and met us halfway. I thank them for their sincere cooperation with us.

I am leaving my post with apprehension, but also with hope, with faith in you, your wisdom and force of spirit. We are the heirs of a great civilization, and its rebirth into a new, modern and dignified life now depends on one and all. I wish to thank with all my heart all those who have stood together with me all these years for the fair and good cause. Some mistakes could surely have been avoided. Many things could have been done better. But I am convinced that sooner or later our common efforts will bear fruit, our nations will live in a prosperous and democratic society. I wish everyone all the best.

With these words, both the Soviet Union and the Cold War came to an end. On August 30, 2022, Gorbachev died at the age of ninety-one. Upon his death, many paid tribute to his role in bringing a peaceful end to the Cold War.