By 1975 the Soviet By 1975 the Soviet Union had been pouring Union had been pouring all of its resources into all of its resources into military development, military development, isolationism, the space isolationism, the space race, and supporting race, and supporting foreign communist foreign communist nations. Doing so, it was nations. Doing so, it was neglecting its own neglecting its own economy and people’s economy and people’s needs. It was going needs. It was going bankrupt. bankrupt.
TIME FOR CHANGE!TIME FOR CHANGE!
Background 1975-1989
The Collapse of the Soviet UnionThe Collapse of the Soviet Union1975-19911975-1991
The Politburo is the ruling committee of the Communist Party
Soviet Union Can’t Keep Up
Mikhail Gorbachev becomes the leader of the Soviet Union.
Glasnost or openness revolutionized the way people thought. (Free flow of ideas and information)
The Effects of GlasnostThe Effects of Glasnost
1. Churches re-opened2. It re-leased political prisoners3. Allowed the publication of books that were
previously banned. (Reporters investigated problems.)
PerestroikaPerestroika
Perestroika is the economic re-structuring of an economy
New openness allowed New openness allowed people to complain about people to complain about the economy.the economy.
Democratization
An opening of the political system that called for election of candidates
More than 100 ethnic groups lived under the Soviet flag
NATIONALISM played a key role in the break up of the Soviet Union. People wanted their own nation!
Gorbachev ordered an economic blockade and used military force to bring LithuaniaLithuania back to the Soviet Union.
Boris Yelstin
Hardliners feared Communism to collapse so they ordered troops to overthrow Parliament but the military refused.
“Shock Therapy” is an economic plan to free market planning.
ChechnyaChechnya
Vladimir Putin succeeded Yelstin and continued the war against Chechnya.
Collapse of Collapse of Communism in Communism in Eastern EuropeEastern Europe
People in Eastern Europe thought that Gorbachev People in Eastern Europe thought that Gorbachev was receptive to change. So, people rebelled!was receptive to change. So, people rebelled!
Poland
PolandPoland
Shipyard workers in Poland demanded that the gov’t recognize their union. SOLIDARITY is SOLIDARITY is when you stick together and fight a common when you stick together and fight a common cause!cause!
PolandPoland
Lech WalseaLech Walsea became Poland’s first President and became Poland’s first President and used “shock therepy” to move his country to a free used “shock therepy” to move his country to a free market economy. (market economy. (CapitalismCapitalism))
Hungary
Once Poland broke away from the Soviet Union, Once Poland broke away from the Soviet Union, HungaryHungary was next. was next.
East GermanyEast Germany
Hungary took down their Iron Curtain so people began to escape into W. Europe.
Erich Honecker (Party Leader) closed the E. German border
In response, East Germans protested
East GermanyEast Germany
To subdue the protests and to keep order, the E. German government allowed people to travel freely to W. Germany.
Europe after the Cold War (Contemporary Europe)
Fall of Communism Video
Effect of the Cold War in Eastern Europe
After Yugoslavia fell, different ethnic groups fought for power.
Serbia and Montenegro were the dominant forces in the region.
Serbia began ethnic cleansing in Bosnia as they began to assume power.
Effects of the Cold War in Eastern Europe
Serbian military forces were killing Bosnian Muslims intending to rid Bosnia of its Muslim population.
Genocide:
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