The Fall of the Soviet Union II

Nationalism and Individuals

How did the govt attempt to unite the union?

Soviet Nationalism

Was Soviet Nationalism effective?

No → based on Russian culture and ‘superiority’, angered the republics but G didn’t recognise this

How did Brezhnev keep nationalism under control?

• Social contract and improved living standards

• Govt encouraged republics to embrace their national culture and language

• Party cadres often local elites

Which of Gorbachev’s reforms caused problems with nationalism?

• Cadre change

• Sinatra Doctrine

• Glasnost

• Democratisation

• Economic reforms

How did economic reforms increase nationalism?

Economic decline caused decrease in living standards, less reason to be a part of the Union

How did G’s cadre change causes problems?

Believed an effective govt should prioritise expertise over representation → Russian leaders replaced non-Russian ones, causing anger

How many non-Russians were there in the Politburo?

1

How did Glasnost worsen nationalist tensions?

• Exposed Stalin’s persecution of non-Russian people

• Revealed the West’s high living standards

• Allowed nationalists to publish their work

What was the Sinatra Doctrine?

Renounced the USSR’s “right” to interfere in the affairs of the republics → “follow their own paths of communism”

When was the Sinatra Doctrine introduced?

1989

How many people protested in Berlin in November 1989?

1 million

When was the fall of the Berlin Wall?

9th November 1989

Which party was victorious in Poland in the 1989 elections?

Solidarity

When and where was the Velvet Revolution?

Czechoslovakia in November 1989

Features of Russian nationalism

• Economic crisis = put Russia first

• Environmental concerns after Chernobyl

• Re-emergence of Russian flag

• Yeltsin declared Russian law superior

When did Yeltsin declare Russian law superior?

1990

Examples of violent unrest in the republics

• Azerbaijani/Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh

• Uzbek/Meskhetian

• Tbilisi Massacre

When were there protests in Karabakh?

1989

Gorbachev’s response to Karabakh protests

• Both Azerbaijanis and Armenians argued that Karabakh was part of their country

• G introduced direct rule which pleased neither side

When was the Uzbek/Meskhetian unrest?

1989

Gorbachev’s response to Uzbek/Meskhetian unrest

• Uzbeks massacred Muslim Meskhetians

• Authorities failed to restore peace, loss of faith in govt

When was the Tbilisi Massacre?

April 1989

How many people were killed in the Tbilisi Massacre?

19 protesters

What happened during the Tbilisi Massacre?

• Georgian nationalists protested against the rights of the Abkhazian minority

• Soviet troops used force and killed protesters

Why were the Baltic states particularly problematic?

Only part of the USSR since 1940

When did Estonia declare sovereignty?

1988

When did Lithuania declare independence?

1990

Gorbachev’s response to Lithuania’s independence

Economic sanctions and armed response in 1991

Response of other republics to Gorbachev’s violence in Lithuania

• Sympathy strikes in Ukraine

• Yeltsin told Russian troops to refuse Soviet orders

What was Gorbachev’s response to growing nationalism?

Proposed a New Union Treaty in 1990 but progress hampered by his lack of democratic legitimacy

What % voters in the remaining nine republics supported a new union?

76%

What union was provisionally agreed in April 1991?

9+1 Agreement → nine republics agreed to establish a federation of independent states with a single president

What stopped the 9+1 Agreement being signed?

Coup d’etat

When was the coup?

18th August 1991

Describe key events of the coup

• 18th August → 8 hardliners set up an Emergency Committee, announced G had resigned (under house arrest in Crimea)

• Yeltsin stood on a tank and demanded people resist the coup, army refused to act against Yeltsin despite EC commands

• 21st August → coup defeated, Gorbachev returned to Moscow

Who supported the coup?

• Gorbachev’s deputy

• Head of the Red Army

• Head of the KGB

Consequences of the coup

1. Yeltsin increased his support → defender of democracy

2. Gorbachev’s authority undermined

3. CP, Army and KGB discredited

4. New Union Treaty not agreed

When did Yeltsin ban the CP in Russia?

November 1991 (suspended in August)

What treaty was eventually agreed?

CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) Treaty → 11/15 republics

When was the CIS agreed?

21st December 1991

When was the USSR dissolved?

25th December 1991, Gorbachev resigned

What criticisms were there of Gorbachev’s leadership?

• Naivety

• Lack of vision/indecision

• Insensitive handling of nationalism

• Foreign policy weakness

• Inconsistency

• Reform too extensive

Defence of Gorbachev’s leadership

• Refusal to use terror

• Bad luck → Afghan War, oil prices

• Personal charm

• End of CW = unpopular with army

How could it be argued that G was responsible for the USSR’s collapse?

Initiated the reforms that led to its collapse

When did G abandon Article 6?

1990

Which of G’s reforms undermined the Party?

• Glasnost

• Article 6 abolished

• Sinatra Doctrine

• Democratisation

• Perestroika → loss of economic confidence

• Extensive reform = CP lost political power

Why was Gorbachev naive?

• Believed the propaganda → believed people genuinely loved the USSR

• Out of touch with nationalism

• Economic ignorance

How did democratisation weaken Gorbachev?

• Emergence of other parties, particularly in satellite states

• Had no personal democratic legitimacy

• Success of radicals like Yeltsin

How did Gorbachev’s inconsistency cause issues?

• 1985-90 radical despite chaos, 1990-91 conservative

• Influenced by hardliners → 500-Day Programme

Whose example could Gorbachev have followed?

China’s → economic reform without political reform, embraced market reform more quickly

Yeltsin’s role in the Party in 1986

• Politburo

• Party Leader in Moscow

Did Yeltsin support Gorbachev?

• Keep supporter 1985-87

• Resigned from Politburo in 1987 in protest at the slow pace of reform

How did Yeltsin become prominent at the 27th Party Congress?

Denounced privileges of Party leaders and advocated multi-candidate elections

Why was Yeltsin sacked as Moscow Party leader?

• Replaced senior officials with younger ones → “instability of the cadres”

• Publicly attacked opposition

Why did Yeltsin become so popular in the 1980s?

• Denouncement of privileged senior officials popular with ordinary citizens

• Support for democratisation attracted middle and low-ranking Party members

What opposition group did Yeltsin lead?

Inter-Regional Deputies Group (IRDG)

Why did Yeltsin have power over Gorbachev?

Publicly elected → elected Chair of Russian Congress

When did Yeltsin become Chair of the Russian Parliament?

May 1990

How did Yeltsin become more popular than Gorbachev?

• Whilst Gorbachev’s reforms became confused and conservative, Yeltsin clearly advocated democracy and market reform

• Supported nationalism

How did Yeltsin undermine the Party?

Dramatically resigned from the Party in 1990, triggering a mass exodus of members

How many people left the CP after Yeltsin’s resignation?

3 million

When was Yeltsin elected Russia’s President?

June 1991

How did Yeltsin encourage nationalism?

• Declared Russia’s sovereignty in 1990

• Encouraged republics to “take as much sovereignty as you can swallow”

• Commanded Russian troops to disobey Soviet orders in Lithuania

How was Yeltsin involved in the coup?

• Denounced the coup and used it to start an uprising against the CP

• Lenin statues destroyed, Pravda closed

• Suspended CP in August, banned in November

How can it be argued that Yeltsin was responsible for the USSR’s collapse?

• Could have saved the USSR due to his popularity, but chose not to

• Instead supported the CIS

• For political reasons (to defeat G) but also easier to reconstruct Russia’s economy only