The End of the Cold War

1
The End of the Cold War
2
The Soviet Union in 1985

• March 1985 Mikhail Gorbachev becomes General
  Secretary of the CPSU
• Problems
• (1) gerontocracy
• (2) economy
• (3) technology and science

3
The Soviet Union in 1985

• External problems
• (1) Afghanistan ..a bleeding wound
• (2) CMEA
• (3) Foreign communist parties
• Younger and fitter

4
Reforms

• April 1985 perestroika introduced
• Believe that need other reforms to sustain
  perestroika
• (1) glasnost
• (2) new thinking in foreign policy

5
New Thinking in Foreign Policy

• Begin to question traditional thinking in many
  areas
• (1) Needed good relations with the US
• (2) Saw world in multipolar terms and not bipolar
• (3) Reduce tension in hot spots
• (4) Reduce ideology
• All aided by changes in personnel Edward
  Shevardnadze replaces Andrei Gromyko as Foreign
  Minister

6
New Thinking in Foreign Policy

• January 1986 Vladivostock
• February 1986 27th Congress of CPSU
• 30 May 1987 Warsaw Pact announcement
• 7 December 1988 Gorbachev at United Nations

7
US Soviet Relations

• Mistrust still at the start and US believing just
  change in style not substance
• A number of summits take place
• November 1985 Geneva
• October 1986 Reykjavik Reagan taking tough
  stance

8
US Soviet Relations

• December 1987 Gorbachev in US Intermediate
  Nuclear Forces Treaty
• May/June 1988 Reagan in Moscow
• November 1988 George Bush wins Presidential
  election - unsure of Soviet motives

9
US Soviet Relations

• 12 May 1989 Bush speech at Texas A M University
  suggests open skies and welcomes Soviet Union
  back into world fold
• December 1989 meeting in Malta
• By end 1989 massive reduction of superpower
  tensions compared to 1985

10
Eastern Europe

• Once reform starts in the Soviet Union
  countries in Eastern Europe want the same
• Everything starts to unravel in Poland
  Hungary

11
Poland Hungary

• Poland
• November 1987 referendum on issues
• Elections June 1989 Solidarity doing well
• September 1989 Tadeusz Mazowiecki
• becomes Prime Minister

12
Poland Hungary

• Hungary
• October 1988 Kadar replaced with Karloy Grosz
• Jan 1989 promised free elections
• April 1989 Soviet troops withdrawn
• June 1989 Imre Nagy reburied

13
German Democratic Republic

• Eric Honecker saying Gorbachev reforms irrelevant
• May 1989 Hun/GDR border opened route to West
  Germany
• mid October Honecker resigns
• 9 November freedom of travel end of Berlin Wall

14
Czechoslovakia Romania

• Czechoslovakia
• 24 November 1989 whole politburo forced to
  resign amid mass demonstrations
• end year Alexander Dubcek speaker in
  parliament Vaclav Havel President
• Romania
• Violent overthrow of Ceausescu as attempts to
  hold onto power

15

• Why did Gorbachev allow this to happen?
• Why did he not invoke the Brezhnev Doctrine?

16
Sinatra Doctrine

• (1) Common European Home
• (2) If used force relations with US would
• have deteriorated return of Cold War
• Sinatra Doctrine do it their way

17
Third World

• Afghanistan
• 1987 Soviet troops withdrawing
• April 1989 Geneva Accords
• 1989 all Soviet troops out
• Angola
• 1987 US-Angolan talks Cuba joined Jan 1988
• 22 Dec 1988 agreement at UN all sides win

18
End of the Cold War

• 4 Dec 1989 Warsaw Pact meeting saying 1968
  invasion wrong
• 5 December Pravda saying Cold War over
• 1990 Gorbachev wins Nobel Peace prize problems
  at home

19
The Role of the US

• SDI bankrupting the Soviet Union
• Backing for Mujaheddin - 250m 1985/630m 1987
  stingers from 1986
• 6 months before velvet revolution no one
  predicting it US can not take plaudits
• Tough action forcing Soviet reforms Moscow
  wanted them anyway

20
Conclusions

• Soviet Union facing massive problems 1985
• Gorbachev realises can not continue as before
  introduces reforms
• Once reforms started drive themselves
• Wanted to reform system not end it

21
Conclusions

• As ideology taken out Soviet foreign policy
  superpower relations improve
• Sinatra Doctrine in Eastern Europe
• Third World reduction in tension
• December 1989 Cold War over
• If a boxing match US left as last man standing