Gorbachev undeniably precipated the fall of the Soviet Union by ending the Cold War

This essay hasn't yet been marked by one of our teachers

You can view 9 essays on International History, 1945-1991 that have been Marked by Teachers

The first 200 words of this essay...

"Gorbachev undeniably precipitated the fall of the Soviet Union by ending the Cold War" Discuss

Gorbachev's intentions behind the ending of the state of hostility with the US were to preserve the longevity of the Soviet Union rather than lead it to its downfall. As events turned out, the impact of his well-intentioned reforms were miscalculated by him, leading to his place in history as the one man who ended the Cold War, if there can be such a one man. Though the end of the Cold War did have an immediate impact on the fall of the Soviet Union through the arousing of nationalist sentiments in the Soviet Union and the political fallout on Gorbachev, in reality underlying socio-economic problems were already in place in the Soviet Union, and Gorbachev's reforms merely brought forward the imminent doom that the Soviet Union was headed for.

The end of the Cold War in Eastern Europe aroused nationalist sentiments in the Soviet Union itself, leading to its decline. Eastern Europe had been brought into the Soviet sphere of influence as buffer states against any possible western invasion. With nuclear technology, Eastern Europe's role as a buffer state has