When the USSR collapsed? Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeevich

The collapse of the Soviet Union was accompanied by processes of systemic disintegration in the national economic complex, social structure, political and public spheres of the country. When the USSR collapsed, 15 republics gained independence. This process was accompanied by a "parade of sovereignties." M. S. Gorbachev (General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee) announced the termination of activities at his post. He explained his decision "principled considerations." The Council of the Republic adopted a corresponding declaration. This document officially confirmed the end of the existence of the USSR (1991, December 26).

Causes of decay

Until now, historians can not come to a consensus on what specifically triggered this process, whether it was possible to prevent a critical situation and internal destruction of the country. In the years of the USSR, the degradation of power structures was actively proceeding, and the members of the higher apparatus were markedly aging. It should be said that the average age of people in the Politburo was already 75 years by the 1980s. At first it led to the "funeral epoch". Then Gorbachev entered the highest apparatus. Mikhail Sergeyevich began to quickly gain power and spread his influence in view of the relatively young age. At the time of his election as the fifth secretary general he was 54. In the years of the USSR, there was an exceptional monocentricity of making any decisions. This right was possessed only by the "union center" - Moscow. In most cases this resulted in a loss of time and inefficiency in the implementation of decisions on the ground. Accordingly, this situation caused sharp criticism in the regions. A number of authors believe that the nationalistic tendencies that took place in the country became the driving force. When the USSR collapsed, ethnic contradictions reached their peak. Individual nations categorically declared their intention to independently develop their own economy and culture. Among the reasons for the collapse are the incompetence of leadership. The leaders of the republics sought to get rid of the control coming from the central government and use the democratic reforms that Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev proposed. With their help, it was supposed to destroy a single system of statehood, decentralize society.

Economic instability

In the USSR under Gorbachev, as, indeed, before him, there were imbalances in the extensive economic system. The consequence of this became:

1. Constant shortage of consumer goods.
2. Increasing technical lag of all spheres of manufacturing industry.

Compensate for the latter could be extremely costly mobilization mechanisms. In 1987, a set of such measures was adopted. It was called "Acceleration". However, it was impossible to implement it in practice, in the absence of economic opportunities.

Quantitative plan

When the USSR collapsed, confidence in the economic system was in critical condition. In the 1960-70's. The main method of combating the shortage of consumer products in a planned economy was the rate of mass, cheapness and simplicity of materials. Most of the enterprises worked in three shifts. They produced similar goods from raw materials of low quality. A quantitative plan was used as the only way to assess the performance of enterprises. As a result, the quality of products produced in the USSR fell sharply.

Dissatisfaction of the population

He was caused by regular interruptions with food products. Especially acute situation was in the era of stagnation and perestroika. Deficiency was observed in other essential goods and prolonged use (toilet paper, refrigerators, etc.). The country had strict restrictions and bans, which also had a negative effect on the mood of the people. The standard of living of citizens constantly lagged behind the Western powers. The administrative apparatus attempted to catch up with foreign countries, but in such economic conditions they were unsuccessful.

Artificial closure of the state

By the 80-ies. It became clear to the entire population of the country. In the USSR, a mandatory visa issuance procedure was introduced to travel abroad. Documents were also needed for trips to the states of the socialist camp. In the state there were violent bans on listening to the voices of enemies, many facts about internal political problems, a higher quality of life in other countries were hushed up. Censorship operated on television and in the press. A number of unsavory works and unknown events of the history of the country were published, the fact of prohibiting publications was revealed. As a result, mass repression followed, Novocherkassk shooting, anti-Soviet rebellion in Krasnodar.

A crisis

When the USSR collapsed, the chronic shortage of goods reached its maximum. Since 1985, the administrative apparatus has begun restructuring. As a result, the political activity of the population sharply increased. Mass, nationalistic and radical organizations, including movements, began to be formed. In 1898, it was officially announced that the country had a crisis. By 1991, practically all goods, except bread, had disappeared from free sale. Almost in all regions, standardized supply in the form of coupons was introduced. In 1991, the death rate exceeded the birth rate. This was the first officially recorded demographic crisis.

"Cold War"

During the last years of the existence of the USSR, active destabilization activity of Western countries was noted. It was an integral part of the Cold War. Subversive activities were accompanied by "agent influence" within the country's leadership apparatus. This opinion is expressed in some analyzes, made, in particular, by a number of former KGB leaders and communist movements.

Boris Yeltsin

Gorbachev tried to save the USSR with all his might. However, he was prevented from doing so by Yeltsin, who was elected on May 29, 1990, to the post of Chairman of the RFFSR. Russia was part of the USSR as one of the republics. It represented a large part of the population of the Union. The central bodies of the Russian Republic, like the All-Union republics, were in Moscow. But they were perceived as secondary. After the election of Yeltsin, the RFSR began to focus on proclaiming its sovereignty in the Union, as well as recognizing the independence of other allied and its autonomous republics. As Chairman of the Armed Forces, he also secured the establishment of the post of President of the RFSR. June 12, 1991, he won the nationwide election. So he became the first president of Russia.

GKCHP

The USSR has reached the deepest crisis in all spheres of life. With the aim of preserving the Union and putting it out of this situation, the State Committee for Emergency Situations was formed. This body existed from August 18 to 21, 1991. The State Emergency Committee included government officials and government officials who opposed the reforms of Perestroika conducted by the acting president of the Union. Members of the committee opposed the transformation of the country into a new confederation. The forces, led by Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin, refused to obey the formed body, calling their activity unconstitutional. The task of the Emergency Committee was the removal of Gorbachev from the presidency, the preservation of the integrity of the USSR, the non-admission of the sovereignty of the republics. The events that took place these days are called "the August putsch". As a result, the activities of the State Emergency Committee were suppressed, and its members were arrested.

Conclusion

In the process of the collapse of the USSR, they first denied, and then the problems of Soviet society were sharply recognized. Alcoholism, drug addiction, prostitution spread to a catastrophic scale. The society became sharply criminalized, the shadow economy sharply increased. This period was also marked by a number of man-made disasters (Chernobyl accident, gas explosions and others). There were also problems on the foreign policy arena. The refusal to participate in the internal affairs of other states led to a massive drop in pro-Soviet communist systems in Eastern Europe in 1989. For example, Lech Walesa (the former head of the Solidarity trade union) takes power in Poland, and Vaclav Havel (former dissident) in Czechoslovakia, . In Romania, the Communists were displaced by using force. On the verdict of the tribunal, President Ceausescu, along with his wife, was shot. As a result, the Soviet system collapsed after the Second World War.