The collapse of the USSR has causes as complex as its consequences. Perestroika set one of its objectives to reform the state structure of the Union. The beginning of glasnost opened up the possibility of media coverage of facts that had never been covered before. The question was immediately raised about the impossibility of independent development of some of the ethnic groups inhabiting it (of which there were not so few). Gradually, contradictions that had previously accumulated but were not discussed publicly became visible. Since 1988, such contradictions began to spill over into (Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, etc.). One by one, the republics began to announce their decision to secede from the Union. They were the first to insist on this. Already in 1990, Lithuania declared its own independence, which accelerated the exit of Latvia and Estonia from the Union.
The country's leadership took some measures to prevent the collapse of the USSR. A referendum was held in 1991, in which the people were given the right to speak out on the issue of preserving the Union. The majority of citizens spoke in favor of a unified socialist state, but at the same time many supported the idea of introducing a presidential post in Russia. On June 12, elections were held, as a result of which M. Gorbachev came to power. The need arose to divide power between the republics. A draft Union Treaty was prepared (9 It was planned to sign the document on August 22. This never happened.
On August 19, the State Committee for the State of Emergency was created, and troops were sent to Moscow. The President of the USSR was actually under arrest at the Crimean dacha. On August 22, members of the Emergency Committee were arrested, and Gorbachev returned to Moscow. And in September, the development of a new treaty began on the creation of a confederal Union of sovereign (rather than Soviet) states. However, in 1991 the leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine announced the creation of the CIS. This is how the final collapse of the USSR was formalized. By the end of December, 8 more republics had joined it. On December 25, Gorbachev announced his resignation.
The collapse of the USSR is called peaceful and bloodless. Many believe that it is not worth regretting, since the events that occurred in December 1991 became the most successful option for the inevitable collapse of the empire. According to a group of researchers, if Moscow tried to preserve the Union, then multi-million human casualties would be quite possible. However, if you take a closer look at what the collapse of the USSR was and what its consequences were, you can find many reasons to doubt the bloodlessness of this event.
The problem of liquidating the Union still remains one of the most discussed in political circles. The assessment of events is far from clear. Of all the modern bright people, only Putin calls the collapse a tragic event and a geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.
Not long ago, material was published on the Internet that provided assessments of the consequences of the collapse of the Union in terms of loss of human lives. According to these data, the number of these victims reached figures from 100,000 to 600,000 people. First of all, we are talking about direct losses during military operations in the territory of the former USSR: in Karabakh, Transnistria, South Ossetia, Chechnya, Abkhazia and Tajikistan.
The 100,000 deaths reported are officially confirmed statistics. But you need to understand that keeping objective records during a war is impossible. Take, for example, the conditions in Karabakh during the conflict. If we add to this the indirect losses due to the collapse of healthcare in the territories involved in wars, rampant crime, mass shutdown of production, total alcoholism and drug addiction, despair that has struck millions of people, then it becomes clear that the figure can be increased almost by an order of magnitude. The collapse of the USSR was not as peaceful as it seems at first glance.
Collapse of the USSR- a set of socio-economic and socio-political processes that led to the cessation of the existence of the Soviet Union as a state in 1989-1991.
Background and background
By the summer of 1989, “perestroika” had turned from a “revolution from above” into a matter of millions. The talk began not to be about improving the socialist system, but about its complete change. A wave of large-scale strikes swept across the country. In July 1989, almost all coal basins went on strike: Donbass, Kuzbass, Karaganda, Vorkuta. The miners put forward not only economic, but also political demands: the abolition of Article 6 of the Constitution, freedom of the press, independent trade unions. The government headed by N.I. Ryzhkov satisfied most of the economic demands (the right to independently dispose of part of the production, determine the form of management or ownership, set prices). The strike movement began to gain momentum, and the Confederation of Labor was created. The Supreme Soviet of the USSR was forced to speed up the process of adopting legislative acts aimed at ensuring the independence of labor collectives. The USSR Law “On the Procedure for Resolving Collective Labor Disputes” was adopted.
The “hot summer” of 1989 was followed by a crisis of confidence in the country’s leadership. Participants in crowded rallies openly criticized the progress of “perestroika”, the indecisiveness and inconsistency of the authorities. The population was outraged by empty store shelves and the increase in crime.
The “Velvet” revolutions in the countries of the Socialist Camp, which led to the fall of communist regimes, and the growth of internal contradictions within the CPSU itself forced the party leadership to reconsider its position on the issue of a multi-party system. The sixth article of the USSR Constitution was repealed, which created a real opportunity for the reorganization of numerous informal associations into political parties. In 1989-1990, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) led by V.V. Zhirinovsky, the Democratic Party of N.I. Travkin and G.K. Kasparov, and the Peasant Party of Russia appeared. Parties that supported anti-communist views united within the framework of the Democratic Russia movement. "Demoros" actively participated in the campaign for the elections of people's deputies of Russia in the winter and spring of 1990. The left and national-patriotic forces, unlike their ideological opponents, were unable to consolidate and attract the electorate - democratic slogans in the conditions of that time turned out to be more attractive to the population.
The situation in the union republics
In the Union republics, problems of interethnic relations have intensified. In 1988-1991, a wave of interethnic conflicts swept across the USSR: Armenian-Karabakh in Nagorno-Karabakh and Sumgait (1988) and in Baku (199), between Uzbeks and Meskhetian Turks in Fergana (1989), Georgian-Abkhaz in Sukhumi (1989) ), Georgian-Ossetian in Tskhinvali (1990). Hundreds of people became victims of pogroms and ethnic clashes; many, fleeing the massacres, were forced to move to other parts of the USSR or emigrate. The party began discussing national problems in September 1989 at the next plenum, but specific acts designed to regulate interethnic and federal relations were adopted only in the spring of 1990. At that time, the central government was no longer strong enough to resort to decisive measures in the republics in the event of unrest breaking out there.
Separatist and nationalist forces in the union republics began to accuse the central government of indifference to the fate of non-Russian peoples, and developed the idea of annexation and occupation of their territories by the USSR, and before that by Russia. In response to this, the September plenum of the Central Committee in 1989 stated that the RSFSR was in conditions of financial and economic discrimination. However, the country's leadership did not offer a way out of the situation. Particularly harsh anti-Soviet rhetoric was maintained in the Baltic republics: back in 1988, local authorities demanded to “clarify” the events of 1940 associated with their annexation to the USSR. At the end of 1988 - beginning of 1989, legislative acts were adopted in the Estonian, Lithuanian and Latvian SSRs, according to which local languages acquired the status of state languages. The session of the Supreme Council of Estonia also adopted the “Declaration of Sovereignty”. Lithuania and Latvia soon followed suit. On March 11, 1990, the Supreme Council of Lithuania adopted the act “On the restoration of an independent state”: the Lithuanian SSR was renamed the Republic of Lithuania, the Constitution of the Lithuanian SSR and the Constitution of the USSR were canceled on its territory. On March 30, a similar act was adopted in Estonia, and on May 4 - in Latvia.
Socio-political situation. Crisis in the CPSU
Against this background, the national-patriotic movement in the RSFSR itself was gaining strength. A wide range of organizations moved in his wake, including Orthodox monarchists, demanding the revival of autocratic power and increasing the authority of the Orthodox Church (“Memory” by D. Vasiliev, “Orthodox-monarchical consent” by Yu. Sokolov). The rapid pace of awakening of national and religious feelings forced other political forces of the RSFSR to adopt many national-patriotic slogans. The idea of Russian sovereignty began to be supported by democrats, who until the beginning of 1990 opposed the sovereignization of the RSFSR, and even by the Communist Party. On March 26, 1990, the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR discussed the draft Concept of the economic independence of the republic. Discussions surrounding the interpretation of the concept of “sovereignty” were largely formal: the main stumbling block in the dialogue between allied and Russian politicians was the problem of radical changes in the existing socio-economic and political system. If Gorbachev continued to assert that the goal of the reforms was the renewal of socialism, then Yeltsin and his associates insisted on the liberal-democratic nature of the upcoming reforms.
Against the background of the emergence of openly anti-socialist and anti-communist parties, the CPSU, which formally maintained organizational and ideological unity, in fact was no longer a community of like-minded people. With the beginning of “Perestroika” in 1985, two approaches began to develop in the CPSU - liquidationist and pragmatic. Adherents of the first believed that the party should not be rebuilt, but liquidated. M. S. Gorbachev also adhered to this point of view. Supporters of a different approach saw in the CPSU the only all-Union force, whose removal from power would plunge the country into chaos. Therefore, they believed, the party needed to be reorganized. The apogee of the crisis of the CPSU was its last, XXVIII Congress in July 1990. Many delegates spoke critically of the work of the party leadership. The party program was replaced by the policy document "Towards a Humane Democratic Socialism", and the right of individuals and groups to express their views in "platforms" revived factionalism. The party de facto split into several “platforms”: the “democratic platform” took social democratic positions, the “Marxist platform” advocated a return to classical Marxism, the “Communist Initiative” movement and the “Unity - for Leninism and Communist Ideals” society united party members extreme left-wing views.
Confrontation between the Union and Republican authorities
Since mid-1990, after the adoption of the Declaration of Russian Sovereignty by the Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR in June 1990, Russia has pursued an independent policy. The Republican Constitution and laws received priority over the Union ones. On October 24, 1990, Russian authorities received the right to suspend acts of union that violated the sovereignty of the RSFSR. All decisions of the authorities of the USSR concerning the RSFSR could now come into effect only after their ratification by the Supreme Council of the RSFSR. The Union authorities lost control over the natural resources and main production assets of the Union republics; they could not enter into trade and economic agreements with foreign partners in connection with the import of goods from the Union republics. The RSFSR had its own Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Main Customs Administration, the Main Administration for Tourism, the Commodity Exchange and other institutions. The branches of Soviet banks located on its territory became the property of Russia: the State Bank of the USSR, Promstroybank of the USSR, Agroprombank of the USSR and others. The Russian Republican Bank of the USSR became the State Bank of the RSFSR. All taxes collected on the territory of the RSFSR now went to the republican budget.
Gradually, there was a reorientation of judicial republican structures to give priority to legislation and the interests of the RSFSR, the Ministry of Press and Information accelerated the development of Russian television and the press. In January 1991, the question arose about its own army for the RSFSR. In May of the same year, the republic acquired its own KGB. In January 1991, the Federation Council of the RSFSR was created.
The Law “On Property in the RSFSR,” adopted on December 24, 1990, legalized a variety of forms of ownership: now property could be in private, state and municipal ownership, as well as in the ownership of public associations. The Law “On Enterprises and Entrepreneurial Activities” was intended to stimulate the activity of various enterprises. Laws were also adopted on the privatization of state and municipal enterprises and housing stock. Prerequisites have emerged for attracting foreign capital. In mid-1991, there were already nine free economic zones in Russia. Considerable attention was paid to the agricultural sector: debts were written off from state and collective farms, and attempts were made to begin agrarian reform by encouraging all forms of farming.
Instead of the gradual transformation of the state “from above” proposed by the Union leadership, the authorities of the Russian Federation began to build a new federation “from below”. In October 1990, the RSFSR concluded direct bilateral agreements with Ukraine and Kazakhstan, and the idea of a “Union of Four” began to be voiced: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. In January 1991, Russia signed similar agreements with the Baltic republics. At that time, the autonomous republics became the object of the struggle for influence between the Union and Russian authorities. At the end of April 1990, the USSR Law “On the Division of Powers between the USSR and the Subjects of the Federation” was adopted, which raised the status of autonomies to the subjects of the federation and allowed them to transfer powers to the USSR, bypassing “their” union republic. The opportunities that opened up whetted the appetites of local national elites: by the end of 1990, 14 of the 16 Russian autonomous republics declared their sovereignty, and the remaining two and some of the autonomous regions increased their political status. Many Declarations contained demands for the supremacy of republican legislation over Russian legislation. The struggle between the Union and Russian authorities for influence on the autonomy continued until August 1991.
The lack of coordination between the actions of the Union and Russian centers of power led to unpredictable consequences. In the fall of 1990, the socio-political mood of the population became more radical, which was largely due to a shortage of food and other goods, including tobacco, which provoked “tobacco” riots (more than a hundred of them were recorded in the capital alone). In September, the country was rocked by a bread crisis. Many citizens saw these difficulties as artificial, accusing the authorities of deliberate sabotage.
On November 7, 1990, during a festive demonstration on Red Square, Gorbachev almost became the victim of an assassination attempt: they shot at him twice, but missed. After this incident, Gorbachev’s course noticeably “corrected”: the President of the USSR submitted proposals to the Supreme Council aimed at strengthening executive power (“Gorbachev’s 8 points”). At the beginning of January 1991, essentially a form of presidential government was introduced. The trend towards strengthening union structures worried liberal politicians, who believed that Gorbachev had fallen under the influence of “reactionary” circles. Thus, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR E. A. Shevardnadze said that “a dictatorship is coming” and left his post as a sign of protest.
In Vilnius, on the night of January 12-13, 1991, during an attempt to seize a television center, a clash occurred between the population and units of the army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It came to bloodshed: 14 people were killed, another 140 were injured. Five people died in Riga in similar clashes. Russian democratic forces reacted painfully to the incident, increasing criticism of the union leadership and security agencies. On February 19, 1991, speaking on television, Yeltsin demanded Gorbachev’s resignation, and a few days later he called on his supporters to “declare war on the country’s leadership.” Even many of Yeltsin’s comrades condemned Yeltsin’s steps. Thus, on February 21, 1990, at a session of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR, six members of its Presidium demanded Yeltsin’s resignation.
In March 1991, the Third Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR met. At it, the Russian leadership was supposed to report on the work done, but against the backdrop of the Allied authorities sending troops into Moscow on the eve of the opening of the Congress, this event turned into a platform for condemning Gorbachev’s actions. Yeltsin and those who supported him made the most of their chance and accused the Union government of putting pressure on the Congress, calling on “progressive-minded” members of the CPSU to join the coalition. The possibility of such a coalition was illustrated by the demarche of A. V. Rutsky, who announced the formation of the “Communists for Democracy” faction and expressed his readiness to support Yeltsin. The Communists at the Congress split. As a result, the Third Congress gave Yeltsin additional powers, significantly strengthening his position in the leadership of the RSFSR.
Preparation of a new union treaty
By the spring of 1991, it became obvious that the USSR leadership had lost control over what was happening in the country. All-Union and republican authorities continued to fight for the division of powers between the Center and the republics - each in its own favor. In January 1991, Gorbachev, seeking to preserve the USSR, initiated an all-Union referendum on March 17, 1991. Citizens were asked to answer the question: “Do you consider it necessary to preserve the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as a renewed federation of equal sovereign republics, in which the rights and freedoms of people of any nationality will be fully guaranteed?” Georgia, Moldova, Armenia, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia refused to hold a referendum in their countries. The Russian leadership also opposed Gorbachev's idea, criticizing the very presentation of the issue in the ballot. In Russia, a parallel referendum was announced on the establishment of the post of president in the republic.
In total, 80% of citizens who had the right to participate in it came to the all-Union referendum. Of these, 76.4% answered the referendum question positively, 21.7% - negatively. In the RSFSR, 71.3% of those who voted were in favor of preserving the Union in the formulation proposed by Gorbachev, and almost the same number - 70% - supported the introduction of the post of President of Russia. The IV Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR, held in May 1991, decided on presidential elections in a short time. The elections took place on June 12 of the same year. 57.3% of voters cast their votes in favor of the candidacy of B. N. Yeltsin. He was followed by N. I. Ryzhkov with 16.8%, and in third place was V. V. Zhirinovsky with 7.8%. Yeltsin became the popularly elected president of Russia, and this strengthened his authority and popularity among the people. Gorbachev, in turn, lost both, being criticized both “from the right” and “from the left.”
As a result of the referendum, the President of the USSR made a new attempt to resume the development of a union treaty. The first stage of Gorbachev’s negotiations with the leaders of the union republics at the residence in Novo-Ogaryovo took place from April 23 to July 23, 1991. The leaders of 8 out of 15 republics expressed their readiness to join the treaty. The meeting participants agreed that it would be advisable to sign the treaty in September-October at the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR, but on July 29-30, 1991, having met behind closed doors with Yeltsin and the Kazakh leader N . A. Nazarbayev, the President of the USSR proposed signing the project earlier, on August 20. In exchange for their consent, Gorbachev accepted Yeltsin’s demands for a single-channel system of tax revenue to the budgets, as well as for personnel changes in the union leadership. These changes were supposed to affect the Chairman of the Government V.S. Pavlov, the head of the KGB V.A. Kryuchkov, the Minister of Defense D.T. Yazov, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs B.K. Pugo and Vice President G.I. Yanaev. All of them in June-July 1991 advocated decisive measures to preserve the USSR.
August putsch
On August 4, Gorbachev went on vacation to Crimea. The top leaders of the USSR objected to plans to sign the Union Treaty. Having failed to convince the President of the USSR, they decided to act independently in his absence. On August 18, the State Committee for a State of Emergency (GKChP) was created in Moscow, which included Pavlov, Kryuchkov, Yazov, Pugo, Yanaev, as well as the chairman of the Peasant Union of the USSR V. A. Starodubtsev, president of the Association of State Enterprises and Industrial, Construction, and Transport Facilities and communications A.I. Tizyakov and First Deputy Chairman of the USSR Defense Council O.D. Baklanov. The next morning, a decree from Vice President Yanaev was promulgated, which stated that Gorbachev was unable to fulfill his duties for health reasons, and therefore they were being transferred to Yanaev. The “Statement of the Soviet leadership” was also published, in which it was reported that a state of emergency was being introduced in certain areas of the USSR for a period of six months, and the “Appeal to the Soviet people”, where Gorbachev’s reform policy was called a dead end. The State Emergency Committee decided to immediately disband power structures and formations that contradict the Constitution and laws of the USSR, suspend the activities of political parties, public organizations and movements that impede the normalization of the situation, take measures to protect public order and establish control over the media. 4 thousand soldiers and officers and armored vehicles were brought into Moscow.
The Russian leadership promptly responded to the actions of the State Emergency Committee, calling the committee itself a “junta” and its performance a “putsch.” Supporters of the Russian authorities began to gather under the walls of the building of the House of Soviets of the RSFSR (“White House”) on Krasnopresnenskaya embankment. President Yeltsin signed a number of decrees, with which he reassigned all executive authorities of the USSR on the territory of the RSFSR, including units of the KGB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Defense.
The confrontation between the Russian authorities and the Emergency Committee did not extend beyond the center of Moscow: in the union republics, as well as in the regions of Russia, local authorities and elites behaved with restraint. On the night of August 21, three young people from among those who came to defend the White House died in the capital. The bloodshed finally deprived the State Emergency Committee of the chance of success. The Russian authorities launched a large-scale political offensive against the enemy. The outcome of the crisis largely depended on Gorbachev’s position: representatives of both sides flew to him in Foros, and he made a choice in favor of Yeltsin and his associates. Late in the evening of August 21, the President of the USSR returned to Moscow. All members of the State Emergency Committee were detained.
Dismantling the state structures of the USSR and legal registration of its collapse
At the end of August, the dismantling of allied political and government structures began. The V Extraordinary Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR, which worked from September 2 to 6, adopted several important documents. The Constitution of the USSR lost force, it was announced that the state would enter a transition period until the adoption of a new basic law and the election of new authorities. At this time, the Congress and the Supreme Soviet of the USSR ceased their work, and the State Council of the USSR was created, which included the presidents and senior officials of the union republics.
On August 23, 1991, B. N. Yeltsin signed the Decree “On the suspension of the activities of the Communist Party of the RSFSR.” Soon the CPSU was effectively banned, and its property and accounts became the property of Russia. On September 25, Gorbachev resigned as general secretary of the party and called for its self-dissolution. Communist parties were also banned in Ukraine, Moldova, Lithuania, and then in other union republics. On August 25, the Council of Ministers of the USSR was liquidated. By the end of 1991, the prosecutor's office, the State Planning Committee and the USSR Ministry of Finance came under Russian jurisdiction. In August-November 1991, the reform of the KGB continued. By the beginning of December, most of the union structures had been liquidated or redistributed.
On August 24, 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR proclaimed Ukraine an independent democratic state. On the same day, Belarus followed its neighbor’s example. On August 27, Moldova did the same, on August 30 - Azerbaijan, on August 21 - Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. On August 24, Russia recognized the independence of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which, in turn, declared independence on August 20-21. Supporters of preserving the Union believed in the prospect of an economic agreement between the countries. On October 18, 1991, the President of the USSR and the heads of 8 republics (excluding Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Azerbaijan) signed the Treaty on the Economic Community of Sovereign States in the Kremlin. At the same time, a draft Union Treaty was being developed. On November 14, in its final draft, the future Union was defined as a “confederal democratic state.” It was decided to begin negotiations regarding its creation on November 25. But on the appointed day, Yeltsin proposed returning to the agreed text, replacing the wording “confederal democratic state” with “confederation of independent states”, and also proposed to wait to see what decision the citizens of Ukraine would make in the referendum (on December 1, they had to decide whether to remain in the Union or not) . As a result, more than 90% of voters supported the independence of Ukraine. The next day, December 2, Russia recognized the independence of the republic.
On December 8, 1991, the Chairman of the Supreme Council of Belarus S. S. Shushkevich, the President of Ukraine L. M. Kravchuk and B. N. Yeltsin signed in Belovezhskaya Pushcha the “Agreement on the Creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States”, the preamble of which stated: “The Union of the USSR as a subject international law and geopolitical reality ceases to exist.” On December 21, 1991, in Almaty, eight more republics joined the Belovezhskaya Agreements on the formation of the CIS. On December 25, 1991, the Supreme Council of the RSFSR approved the new name of the republic - the Russian Federation (Russia). On the same day, at 19:38, the red Soviet flag was lowered over the Kremlin, and the Russian tricolor was raised to replace it.
Collapse of the USSR- processes that took place in the socio-political life and economy of the Soviet Union in the second half of the 80s - early 90s of the XX century, which led to the cessation of the existence of the USSR on December 26, 1991 and the formation of independent states in its place.
Since 1985, the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee M. S. Gorbachev and his supporters began the policy of perestroika. Attempts to reform the Soviet system led to a deepening crisis in the country. In the political arena, this crisis was expressed as a confrontation between USSR President Gorbachev and RSFSR President Yeltsin. Yeltsin actively promoted the slogan of the need for the sovereignty of the RSFSR.
General crisis
The collapse of the USSR took place against the backdrop of the onset of a general economic, foreign policy and demographic crisis. In 1989, the beginning of the economic crisis in the USSR was officially announced for the first time (economic growth was replaced by decline).
In the period 1989-1991, the main problem of the Soviet economy reached its maximum - a chronic commodity shortage; Almost all basic goods, except bread, disappear from free sale. Rationed supplies in the form of coupons are being introduced throughout the country.
Since 1991, a demographic crisis (an excess of mortality over the birth rate) has been recorded for the first time.
Refusal to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries entails the massive collapse of pro-Soviet communist regimes in Eastern Europe in 1989. In Poland, former leader of the Solidarity trade union Lech Walesa comes to power (December 9, 1990), in Czechoslovakia - former dissident Vaclav Havel (December 29, 1989). In Romania, unlike other countries in Eastern Europe, the communists were removed by force, and President Ceausescu and his wife were shot by a tribunal. Thus, there is a virtual collapse of the Soviet sphere of influence.
A number of interethnic conflicts are flaring up on the territory of the USSR.
The first manifestation of tension during the perestroika period was the events in Kazakhstan. On December 16, 1986, a protest demonstration took place in Alma-Ata after Moscow tried to impose its protege V. G. Kolbin, who had previously worked as the first secretary of the Ulyanovsk Regional Committee of the CPSU and had nothing to do with Kazakhstan, to the post of first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the KazSSR. This demonstration was suppressed by internal troops. Some of its participants “disappeared” or were imprisoned. These events are known as "Zheltoksan".
The Karabakh conflict that began in 1988 was particularly acute. There are mass pogroms of both Armenians and Azerbaijanis. In 1989, the Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR announced the annexation of Nagorno-Karabakh, and the Azerbaijan SSR began a blockade. In April 1991, a war actually began between the two Soviet republics.
In 1990, unrest occurred in the Fergana Valley, which is characterized by a mixture of several Central Asian nationalities. The decision to rehabilitate the peoples deported by Stalin leads to increased tension in a number of regions, in particular, in Crimea - between returning Crimean Tatars and Russians, in the Prigorodny region of North Ossetia - between Ossetians and returning Ingush.
On February 7, 1990, the CPSU Central Committee announced the weakening of the monopoly on power, and within a few weeks the first competitive elections were held. During 1990-1991 the so-called “parade of sovereignties”, during which all the union (including the RSFSR one of the first) and many of the autonomous republics adopted Declarations of Sovereignty, in which they challenged the priority of all-union laws over republican ones, which began the “war of laws”. They also took actions to control local economies, including refusals to pay taxes to the union and federal Russian budgets. These conflicts cut off many economic ties, which further worsened the economic situation in the USSR.
The first territory of the USSR to declare independence in January 1990 in response to the Baku events was the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. Before the massive collapse of the USSR, as a result of the actions of the State Emergency Committee, two union republics (Lithuania and Georgia) declared independence, and four more (Estonia, Latvia, Moldova, Armenia) refused to join the proposed new Union and transition to independence.
Immediately after the events of the State Emergency Committee, independence was declared by almost all the remaining union republics, as well as several autonomous ones outside Russia, some of which later became the so-called. unrecognized states.
Lithuania branch.
On June 3, 1988, the Sąjūdis independence movement was founded in Lithuania. In January 1990, Gorbachev's visit to Vilnius caused a demonstration of independence supporters numbering up to 250 thousand people.
On March 11, 1990, the Supreme Council of Lithuania, headed by Vytautas Landsbergis, declared independence. Thus, Lithuania became the first of the union republics to declare independence, and one of two that did so before the events of the State Emergency Committee. Lithuania's independence was not recognized by the central government of the USSR and almost all other countries. The Soviet government began an economic blockade of Lithuania, and later troops were used.
Estonia branch.
In 1988, the People's Front of Estonia was formed, which declared the goal of restoring independence. In June 1988, the so-called “Singing revolution” - up to one hundred thousand people take part in the traditional festival on the Singing Field. March 23, 1990 The Communist Party of Estonia leaves the CPSU.
On March 30, 1990, the Supreme Council of Estonia declared entry into the USSR in 1940 illegal, and began the process of transforming Estonia into an independent state.
Latvian branch.
In Latvia, in the period 1988-1990, the Popular Front of Latvia, which advocates independence, strengthened, and the struggle with the Interfront, which advocated maintaining membership in the USSR, intensified.
4 May 1990 The Supreme Council of Latvia proclaims the transition to independence. On March 3, 1991, the demand was supported by a referendum.
The peculiarity of the separation of Latvia and Estonia is that, unlike Lithuania and Georgia, before the complete collapse of the USSR, they did not declare independence, but a “soft” “transition process” to it, and also that, in order to gain control on their territory in conditions of a relatively small relative majority of the titular population, republican citizenship was granted only to persons living in these republics at the time of their annexation to the USSR, and their descendants.
The Central Union Government made forceful attempts to suppress the achievement of independence by the Baltic republics. On January 13, 1991, a special forces detachment and the Alpha group stormed the television tower in Vilnius and stopped republican television broadcasting. On March 11, 1991, the National Salvation Committee of Lithuania was formed and troops were sent in. One of the most famous faces of the democratic movement of that time, St. Petersburg journalist Alexander Nevzorov, host of the popular program “600 Seconds,” covered the events in Vilnius, approving the actions of the special forces; the word “Ours” was repeated many times in the reports. On July 31, 1991, riot police clashed with Lithuanian border guards in Medininkai.
Georgia branch.
Since 1989, a movement has emerged in Georgia to secede from the USSR, which has intensified against the backdrop of the growing Georgian-Abkhaz conflict. On April 9, 1989, clashes with troops occur in Tbilisi with casualties among the local population.
On November 28, 1990, during the elections, the Supreme Council of Georgia was formed, headed by the radical nationalist Zviad Gamsakhurdia, who was later (May 26, 1991) elected president by popular vote.
On April 9, 1991, the Supreme Council declared independence based on the results of a referendum. Georgia became the second of the union republics to declare independence, and one of two that did so before the events of the State Emergency Committee.
The autonomous republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which were part of Georgia, announced non-recognition of the independence of Georgia and their desire to remain part of the Union, and later formed unrecognized states.
Azerbaijan branch.
In 1988, the Popular Front of Azerbaijan was formed. The beginning of the Karabakh conflict led to the orientation of Armenia towards Russia, at the same time it led to the strengthening of pro-Turkish elements in Azerbaijan.
After demands for independence were heard at the initial anti-Armenian demonstrations in Baku, they were suppressed on January 20-21, 1990 by the Soviet Army.
Branch of Moldova.
Since 1989, the movement for secession from the USSR and state unification with Romania has been intensifying in Moldova.
October 1990 - clashes between Moldovans and the Gagauz, a national minority in the south of the country.
June 23, 1990 Moldova declares sovereignty. Moldova proclaims independence after the events of the State Emergency Committee - August 27, 1991.
The population of eastern and southern Moldova, trying to avoid integration with Romania, declared non-recognition of the independence of Moldova and proclaimed the formation of the new republics of the Transnistrian Moldavian Republic and Gagauzia, which expressed a desire to remain in the Union.
Ukraine branch.
In September 1989, the movement of Ukrainian national democrats, the People's Movement of Ukraine (People's Movement of Ukraine), was founded, which participated in the elections on March 30, 1990 to the Verkhovna Rada (Supreme Council) of Ukraine, and gained significant influence in it.
During the events of the Emergency Committee, on August 24, 1991, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a declaration of independence.
Later in Crimea, thanks to the Russian-speaking majority of the population, who did not want separation from Russia, the sovereignty of the Republic of Crimea was proclaimed for a short time.
Attempts to secede Tatarstan and Chechnya
On August 30, 1990, Tatarstan adopted the Declaration of Sovereignty, in which, unlike some union and almost all other autonomous Russian (except Checheno-Ingushetia) republics, the republic’s membership in neither the RSFSR nor the USSR was indicated and it was declared that as a sovereign state and subject of international law, it concludes treaties and alliances with Russia and other states. During the collapse of the USSR and later, Tatarstan adopted declarations and resolutions on the act of independence and entry into the CIS with the same wording, held a referendum, and adopted a constitution.
Likewise, membership in the RSFSR and the USSR was not indicated in the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Chechen-Ingush Republic adopted on November 27, 1990. On June 8, 1991, the independence of the Chechen Republic of Nokhchi-cho, the Chechen part of the former Checheno-Ingushetia, was declared.
Later (in the spring of 1992), Tatarstan and Chechnya-Ichkeria (as well as Ingushetia) did not sign the Federative Treaty on the establishment of a renewed Russian Federation.
1991 referendum on preserving the USSR
In March 1991, a referendum was held in which the overwhelming majority of the population in each of the republics voted in favor of preserving the USSR.
In the six union republics (Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Georgia, Moldova, Armenia), which had previously declared independence or a transition to independence, an all-Union referendum was not actually held (the authorities of these republics did not form Central Election Commissions, there was no general voting of the population ) with the exception of some territories (Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Transnistria), but at other times referendums on independence were held.
Based on the concept of the referendum, it was planned to conclude a new union on August 20, 1991 - the Union of Sovereign States (USS) as a soft federation.
However, although at the referendum the overwhelming majority of votes were cast in favor of maintaining the integrity of the USSR.
The role of the authorities of the RSFSR in the collapse of the Soviet Union
Russia was also part of the USSR as one of the union republics, representing the overwhelming majority of the population of the USSR, its territory, economic and military potential. The central bodies of the RSFSR were also located in Moscow, like the all-Union ones, but were traditionally perceived as secondary in comparison with the authorities of the USSR.
With the election of Boris Yeltsin as the head of these government bodies, the RSFSR gradually set a course towards declaring its own independence, and recognizing the independence of the remaining union republics, which created the opportunity to remove Mikhail Gorbachev by dissolving all all-union institutions that he could head.
On June 12, 1990, the Supreme Council of the RSFSR adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty, establishing the priority of republican laws over union ones. From that moment on, the all-Union authorities began to lose control over the country; The “parade of sovereignties” intensified.
January 12, 1991 Yeltsin signs an agreement with Estonia on the fundamentals of interstate relations, in which the RSFSR and Estonia recognize each other as sovereign states.
As Chairman of the Supreme Council, Yeltsin was able to achieve the establishment of the post of President of the RSFSR, and on June 12, 1991 he won the popular election for this position.
State Emergency Committee and its consequences
A number of government and party leaders, in order to preserve the unity of the country, attempted a coup d'etat and the removal of those in power in the USSR and leading an anti-Soviet policy, actions directed against their own? the same people (GKChP, also known as the “August putsch” on August 19, 1991).
The defeat of the putsch actually led to the collapse of the central government of the USSR, the resubordination of power structures to republican leaders and the collapse of the Union. Within a month after the coup, the authorities of almost all the union republics declared independence one after another. Some of them held independence referendums to give legitimacy to these decisions.
None of the republics complied with all the procedures prescribed by the USSR law of April 3, 1990 “On the procedure for resolving issues related to the secession of a union republic from the USSR.” The State Council of the USSR (a body created on September 5, 1991, consisting of the heads of the union republics chaired by the President of the USSR) formally recognized the independence of only three Baltic republics (September 6, 1991, resolutions of the USSR State Council No. GS-1, GS-2, GS-3). On November 4, V.I. Ilyukhin opened a criminal case against Gorbachev under Article 64 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR (treason) in connection with these resolutions of the State Council. According to Ilyukhin, Gorbachev, by signing them, violated the oath and the Constitution of the USSR and damaged the territorial integrity and state security of the USSR. After this, Ilyukhin was fired from the USSR Prosecutor's Office. Which proves he's right.
Signing of the Belovezhskaya Accords. Founding of the CIS
On December 8, 1991, the heads of 3 republics - Belarus, Russia and Ukraine - at a meeting in Belovezhskaya Pushcha (Belarus) stated that the USSR was ceasing to exist, announced the impossibility of forming the GCC and signed an Agreement on the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). On December 11, the USSR Constitutional Supervision Committee issued a statement condemning the Belovezhskaya Agreement. This statement had no practical consequences, since those in power were those who, by their actions, had already violated the Constitution of the USSR, went against the country, betrayed the interests of the state, which they were supposed to defend, without actually fulfilling their official duties, and ultimately achieved its goal: the collapse of the USSR.
On December 16, the last republic of the USSR - Kazakhstan - declared its independence. Thus, in the last 10 days of its existence, the USSR, which had not yet been legally abolished, was actually a state without territory.
Completion of the collapse. Liquidation of power structures of the USSR
On December 25, USSR President M. S. Gorbachev announced the termination of his activities as President of the USSR “for reasons of principle,” signed a decree resigning from the powers of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Armed Forces and transferred control of strategic nuclear weapons to Russian President B. Yeltsin.
On December 26, the session of the upper chamber of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, which retained a quorum - the Council of Republics (formed by the USSR Law of September 5, 1991 N 2392-1), - from which at that time only representatives of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan were not recalled, adopted under the chairmanship of A. Alimzhanov, declaration No. 142-N on the termination of the existence of the USSR, as well as a number of other documents (resolution on the dismissal of judges of the Supreme and Higher Arbitration Courts of the USSR and the collegium of the USSR Prosecutor's Office (No. 143-N), resolutions on the dismissal of the chairman State Bank V.V. Gerashchenko (No. 144-N) and his first deputy V.N. Kulikov (No. 145-N)).
Before examining the question of the reasons for the collapse of the USSR, it is necessary to provide brief information about this powerful state.
USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) is a communist superstate founded by the great leader V.I. Lenin in 1922 and lasted until 1991. This state occupied the territories of Eastern Europe and parts of Northern, Eastern and Central Asia.
The process of the collapse of the USSR is a historically determined process of decentralization in the economic, social, public and political sphere of the USSR. The result of this process is the complete collapse of the USSR as a state. The complete collapse of the USSR occurred on December 26, 1991; the country was divided into fifteen independent states - former Soviet republics.
Now that we have received brief information about the USSR and now imagine what kind of state it is, we can move on to the question of the reasons for the collapse of the USSR.
The main reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union
There has been a debate among historians for a long time about the reasons for the collapse of the USSR; among them there is still no single point of view, just as there is no point of view about the possible preservation of this state. However, most historians and analysts agree with the following reasons for the collapse of the USSR:
1. Lack of professional young bureaucrats and the so-called Funeral Era. In the last years of the Soviet Union, most officials were elderly - an average of 75 years. But the state needed new personnel capable of seeing the future, and not just looking back at the past. When officials began to die, a political crisis was brewing in the country due to the lack of experienced personnel.
2. Movements with the revival of the national economy and culture. The Soviet Union was a multinational state, and in recent decades each republic wanted to develop independently, outside the Soviet Union.
3. Deep internal conflicts. In the eighties, an acute series of national conflicts occurred: the Karabakh conflict (1987-1988), the Transnistrian conflict (1989), the Georgian-South Ossetian conflict (began in the eighties and continues to this day), the Georgian-Abkhaz conflict (late eighties). These conflicts finally destroyed the faith and national unity of the Soviet people.
4. Acute shortage of consumer goods. In the eighties, this problem became especially acute; people were forced to stand in line for hours and even days for products such as bread, salt, sugar, cereals and other goods necessary for life. This undermined people's faith in the power of the Soviet economy.
5. Inequality in the economic development of the republics of the USSR. Some republics were significantly inferior to a number of others in economic terms. For example, less developed republics experienced an acute shortage of goods, since, for example, in Moscow this situation was not so acute.
6. An unsuccessful attempt to reform the Soviet state and the entire Soviet system. This unsuccessful attempt led to complete stagnation in the economy. Subsequently, this led not only to stagnation, but also to the complete collapse of the economy. And then the political system was destroyed, unable to cope with the pressing problems of the state.
7. Decline in the quality of manufactured consumer goods. The shortage of consumer goods began in the sixties. Then the Soviet leadership took the next step - it cut the quality of these goods in order to increase the quantity of these goods. As a result, the goods were no longer competitive, for example, in relation to foreign goods. Realizing this, people stopped believing in the Soviet economy and increasingly paid attention to the Western economy.
8. The lag in the standard of living of the Soviet people compared to the Western standard of living. This problem has shown itself to be especially acute in the crisis of major consumer goods and, of course, the crisis of appliances, including home appliances. Televisions, refrigerators - these products were practically never produced and people were forced for a long time to use old models that were almost out of date. This caused already growing discontent among the population.
9. Closing the country. Due to the Cold War, people were practically unable to leave the country; they could even be declared enemies of the state, that is, spies. Those who used foreign technology, wore foreign clothes, read books by foreign authors, and listened to foreign music were severely punished.
10. Denial of problems in Soviet society. Following the ideals of communist society, there have never been murders, prostitution, robberies, alcoholism, or drug addiction in the USSR. For a long time, the state completely concealed these facts, despite their existence. And then, at one moment, it abruptly acknowledged their existence. Faith in communism was again destroyed.
11. Disclosure of classified materials. The majority of people in Soviet society knew nothing about such terrible events as the Holodomor, Stalin's mass repressions, numerical executions, etc. Having learned about this, people realized what horror the communist regime brought.
12. Man-made disasters. In the last years of the existence of the USSR, a greater number of serious man-made disasters occurred: plane crashes (due to outdated aviation), the collapse of the large passenger ship Admiral Nakhimov (about 430 people died), the disaster near Ufa (the largest railway accident in the USSR, more than 500 died Human). But the worst thing is the Chernobyl accident of 1986, the number of victims of which is impossible to count, and this is not to mention the harm to the world ecosystem. The biggest problem was that the Soviet leadership hid these facts.
13. Subversive activities of the USA and NATO countries. NATO countries, and especially the USA, sent their agents to the USSR, who pointed out the problems of the Union, severely criticized them and reported on the advantages inherent in Western countries. Through their actions, foreign agents split Soviet society from within.
These were the key reasons for the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics - a state that occupied 1 of the entire land territory of our planet. Such a number, especially incredibly acute problems, could not be resolved by any successful bill. Of course, during his tenure as president, Gorbachev still tried to reform Soviet society, but it was impossible to solve such a number of problems, especially in such a situation - the USSR simply did not have the funds for such a number of cardinal reforms. The collapse of the USSR was an irreversible process, and historians who have not yet found at least one theoretical way to preserve the integrity of the state are direct confirmation of this.
The official announcement of the collapse of the USSR was announced on December 26, 1991. Before this, on December 25, the President of the USSR, Gorbachev, resigned.
The collapse of the Union marked the end of the war between the United States and NATO against the USSR and its allies. The Cold War thus ended with the complete victory of capitalist states over communist countries.
December 8, 1991 during a meeting in Belarus in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, carried out in secret from the Soviet president, the leaders of the three Slavic republics B.N. Yeltsin (Russia), L.M. Kravchuk (Ukraine), S.S. Shushkevich (Belarus) announced the termination of the Union Treaty of 1922 and the creation of the CIS - Commonwealth of Independent States.
Reasons for collapse:
1) weakening of the influence of the power vertical of the USSR
2) sovereignty of the republics, their constitutional right to secede from the USSR
3) the desire of the elites of the union and a number of autonomous republics to control the resources of their territories without the participation of the union authorities
4) the need to restore lost national statehood
5) orientation towards joining neighboring states
6) crisis of ideology
7) unsuccessful attempts to reform the Soviet system, which led to stagnation and then the collapse of the economy and political system
II. The process of the collapse of the USSR fits into three stages
Stage 1.
This is the period of perestroika, when the political activity of the people increased, mass movements and organizations were formed, including radical and nationalist ones. The situation was aggravated by the confrontation in the political space between USSR President Gorbachev and RSFSR President Yeltsin.
In 1989, the beginning of the economic crisis was officially announced for the first time - economic growth was replaced by decline;
In the period 1989-1991. The main problem of the Soviet economy reaches its maximum - a chronic commodity shortage - almost all basic goods, except bread, disappear from free sale. In the regions of the country, rationed supplies in the form of coupons are being introduced;
Since 1991, a demographic crisis (an excess of mortality over the birth rate) has been recorded for the first time;
In 1989, there is a massive collapse of pro-Soviet communist regimes in Eastern Europe;
A number of interethnic conflicts are flaring up on the territory of the USSR:
In June 1989, interethnic conflicts broke out
Stage 2. The “parade of sovereignties” begins, which in turn pushes the leadership of the USSR to create a new Union Treaty.
On February 7, 1990, the CPSU Central Committee announced the weakening of the monopoly on power, and within a few weeks the first competitive elections were held. Liberals and nationalists won many seats in the parliaments of the union republics. And during 1990-1991. all allied, incl. both the RSFSR and many of the autonomous republics adopted Declarations of Sovereignty, in which they challenged the priority of all-Union laws over republican laws, which began the “war of laws.”
From August to October 1990, there was a “parade of sovereignties” of the autonomous republics and autonomous regions of the RSFSR. Most autonomous republics proclaim themselves Soviet socialist republics within the RSFSR or the USSR. - Trying to somehow save the USSR, the Union leadership held a referendum in March 1991, in which more than 76% voted for “preserving the USSR as a renewed federation of equal sovereign republics” (including more than 70% in the RSFSR and the Ukrainian SSR). Despite this victory, centrifugal forces continue to grow.
Stage 3. Union Treaty - State Emergency Committee and the collapse of the USSR.
3.1. A number of government and party leaders, under the slogans of preserving the unity of the country and to restore strict party-state control over all spheres of life, attempted a coup, known as the “August putsch.”
The defeat of the putsch led to the collapse of the central government of the USSR.
On November 14, 1991, seven of the twelve republics (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) decide to conclude an agreement on the creation of the Union of Sovereign States (USS) as a confederation with its capital in Minsk. Its signing was scheduled for December 9, 1991.
3.3. However, on December 8, 1991, in Belovezhskaya Pushcha, where the heads of the three republics, the founders of the USSR - Belarus, Russia and Ukraine - gathered, the early agreements were rejected by Ukraine.
The heads of the 3 republics stated that the USSR was ceasing to exist and signed the Agreement on the creation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The signing of the agreements caused a negative reaction from Gorbachev, but after the August putsch he no longer had real power. On December 21, 1991, at a meeting of presidents in Almaty (Kazakhstan), 8 more republics joined the CIS: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan.
On December 25, 1991, USSR President M. S. Gorbachev announced the termination of his activities as President of the USSR “for reasons of principle,” signed a decree resigning as Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Armed Forces and transferred control of strategic nuclear weapons to Russian President B. Yeltsin.
The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the most dramatic geopolitical situation since World War II. In fact it was real geopolitical catastrophe, the consequences of which still affect the economy, politics and social sphere of all former republics of the Soviet Union.
