From Superpower to Collapse The Soviet Union From Superpower to Collapse

Cold War Repression Under Stalin Stalin continued repression especially after WWII Rigid controls over economic, intellectual and cultural life put millions of persons being sent to forced labor camps (gulags) The KGB increased in power

Official anti-Semitism led to fabricated charges against the group of Jewish doctors Stalin died before their executions and imprisonment could commence

Khrushchev’s Abortive Reforms Nikita Khrushchev emerged as General Secretary of the Communist Party Secured his leadership by distancing himself from Stalin Soviet intellectual life opened up somewhat

Had a goal of surpassing the US economy by 1980, but failed Also failed to fix the woeful productivity of Soviet collective farms Khrushchev found himself blocked by party bureaucrats who feared reforms and the loss of power He lost power in 1964

Nuclear Parity and Domestic Drift Brezhnev Party leaders selected Brezhnev for his status quo credentials His goal was “no experimentation” His most important diplomatic achievement was nuclear parity with the US Could also boast formidable space program, scientific programs and Olympic athlete successes

Successes could not compensate for the staggering Soviet economy Barely met established quotas and the nation continued to focus on production of heavy industry Many workers failed to show up to work and alcoholism became rife Poor social health

Gorbachev Mikhail Gorbachev was chosen as General Secretary in 1985 He was only 54 Recognized the problems within the Soviet economy and social life Wanted to create “socialism with a human face”

Centerpiece of his reforms was perestroika, or restructuring, of the centrally planned Soviet economy Wanted to promote production of more consumer goods Wanted to decentralize control of state-owned enterprises

Glasnost was next Policy of openness Soviet citizens were encouraged to discuss openly the failures of the past Gorbachev allowed Soviet Jews to emigrate and promoted religious freedom

The disaster at Chernobyl demonstrated the needs of Soviet modernization and reform In 1988, Gorbachev was stuck between hard-line defenders of the old system and “shock therapy” advocates of free market capitalism Gorbachev moved power from the party over to state institutions His reforms could not save the old system or create a new one

Defenders of the old system began to lose faith in Gorbachev Reformers turned to the newly elected Russian president, Boris Yeltsin Perestroika and glasnost sparked independence movements by many ethnic minorities within the Soviet empire

Gorbachev worked out a “union treaty” with the 15 republics for greater autonomy within the USSR Would take effect in August 1991 Before the treaty became operative, communist hard-liners attempted to overthrow Gorbachev The coup failed miserably Gorbachev would return to power, but not for long

Yeltsin outlawed the Communist Party in Russia The Soviet Union was voted out of existence by the federation council of the various republics

Russia since 1991 12 republics agreed to form a loose Commonwealth of Independent States Yeltsin found himself pushed back and forth between bold reform and repression In spring of 1993, Yeltsin dissolved the legislature and called for new elections

Hard liners refused to leave the building, leading to a violent clash Yeltsin won the battle and his new constitution took effect Public support of reform wavered Yeltsin also found himself bogged down in an ethnic conflict with separatist Chechnya Yeltsin sponsored the rise of Vladimir Putin

Putin worked to advance Russia’s independent position in world affairs, promote economic development and centralize state authority He was reelected in 2004 His presidency had been marked by an increase in state control of the media and repression of internal opponents of his regime

Russia still continues to face serious problems Terrorism in Chechnya Corruption in government Inequality between urban and rural areas Organized crime Decaying military infrastructure Declining life expectancy