Transcript Gorbachev and His Aims/Policies

• PRESCRIBED SUBJECT
Route 2:
• Prescribed Subject 3:
Communism in Crisis
• The Fall of Communism: The
USSR and Eastern Europe
• Area # 2
– Gorbachev and His
Aims/Policies (Glasnost and
Perestroika and the
Consequences for the Soviet
State
Between
Brezhnev and
Gorbachev
• Brezhnev dies Nov. 1982
– Yuri Andropov head of KGB is selected as new
leader
– Very Bright but has fatal kidney condition and is
69 years old
• Tries to modernize and reform, brings in “young”
leaders like Gorbachev
• Seriously ill most of 1983-84 and dies in Feb 1984
• Konstantin Chernenko is the last gasp of the old
guard
– 72 has emphysema but is selected anyway
• Dies March 1985
• Mikhail Gorbachev born 1931 age 54
– 1980 joins Politburo as youngest member
– Andropov protégé
– Flexible, open manner Fails as head of Soviet
Agriculture but reputation unharmed (nobody can
fix Soviet agriculture!!)
• Gorbachev is a commited Communist
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
•
– No intention of presiding over the demise of the USSR
– Wants to reform and reinvigorate CPSU
– Reform economy but retain state socialism
Key allies
– N. Ryzhkov Prime Minister
– Yegor Ligachev (Deputy/Assistant
– E. Shevardnadze (Foreign Ministry)
– A. Yakovlev (adviser)
• Group makes Politburo much younger than Brezhnev’s
– First Effort is ant-corruption campaign
• Ousts half P-B and Cent. Com. Despite opposition of
traditionalists
• Half Provicial Party Secretaries also forced out and 2/3’s
of gov’t ministers
• Problem is low level officials still protect their privileges
• Eventually attacked as too cautious by the
Left(Reformers) and too radical by the right
(traditionalists)
• Campaign v. Alcoholism
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
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–
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Reduced production
Cracked down on home production and stills
Total Failure
Organized crime sells it anyway, stills continue
Lose 28 bi. Rubles in taxes (abandoned 1988)
• GLASNOST
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Openness
Goal is to reform not dismantle CPSU
Make state management open to debate
Expose and circumvent petty officials by political
criticism
– Unleashes radical reforms by mistake
• Perestroika
– Restructuring
– Loose definition is Gorbachev’s reform
– No clear plan: Left 1984-89, Right 1990, Left again
1991
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– Initial Reforms aimed at gov’t, quickly becomes
relaxation in all areas
• Art, writing, news, media
– Chernobyl melt down key turning point
• Encourage open debate to end obstruction of reforms by
low level officials
• Sakharov brought back 1986
• 1988 corruption, econ. problems, the Terror all open for
debate (unheard of freedom)
• Even investigate Stalin’s actions
– Openness leads to civic society
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•
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•
Clubs, associations
Nationalist movements, Democratic ones
Recreational groups
Democratic Union independent political party formed
• First challenge to Glasnost is Andreyeva Letter
– She writes to newspaper defending parts of Stalinism and
Marxism/Leninism
– Ligachev supports it and Gorby fires him
– Glasnost continues under Yakovlev
• Political Reform
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– 19th Party Congress 1988
• Term limits and multi-candidate elections of
officials (Still communists)
• Democracy within CPSU not the country as a
whole
– Gorbachev decides to go around the CPSU and creates
the Congress of Peoples Deputies Dec. 1988
– Circumvent the bureaucrats holding up reforms
– 2250 Deputies elect 542 member Supreme Soviet
• 1/3 must be appointed CPSU
• Gen’l Secretary of CPSU assumed to Chair the Sup. Soviet
– 1989 Election conservatives win but 400 reformers
elected 90% vote
– 1st CPD Session
• Televised
• Debate Stalin, economy, corruption, end of CPSU
domination
• Problem is it makes USSR more unstable as left and right
both unhappy
• Political Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– Gorbachev now faces attacks from the Left (not
reforming fast enough) and the Right (going way too
fast)
– Also faces threats from charismatic newcomers
• Boris Yeltsin is local Party anti-corruption boss and
is brought in to run the Moscow Party organization
• Populist who mingles with the people
• Antagonizes Ligachev when he criticizes Party
perks
• Then publicly says Perestroika too slow
• Publicly humiliated and fired Oct.1987
– Public apology at 19th Congress 1988 but is not reappointed
• Re-emerges as Russian nationalist (Opportunist??)
– Wins Moscow seat in 1989 CPD elections
– In 1990 he is elected to the Russian Republic Congress (not
the CPR of the USSR but the “state’ congress)
– Chosen speaker of the Russian (not USSR Soviet)
– 1991 elected President of the Russian Republic
– He is therefore, unlike Gorbachev democratically elected
• Political Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– The Union Question
• The Soviet Union has little attraction to the
nationalities making up 48% of the USSR
• The Tsar had justified Empire by divine right,
Communism had used coercion
• Under Gorby the CPSU was now just another
political Party looking for votes
• Intense nationalism follows. Why?
– Economy gets worse and worse so why remain
in USSR
– Gorbachev encourages openness and debate
– 1989 independence movements occur in Pol.,
Czech., Hungary, E. Ger., Bulgaria and
Romania
– Leads to vocal autonomy movements
throughout USSR even in the RSFSR
• Political Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– The Union Question (con’t)
– Baltic States
• Popular fronts for independence spring up
• 1988 Estonia says it can overrule USSR Laws
• Nov. Estonia and Lithuania abandon Russian as
their official language
• March 1990 Lith. Annouces independence but
backs down when Gorby announces economic
blockade
• Azerbaijan/Armenian violence breaks out 1988
• Georgia independence riots 1989
• 1 mi. person human chain in Baltics to demand
independence Aug. 1989
– Russian Nationalism as well
• 50% of total population
• Resent supporting poorer republics
• Elect Russian CPD in 1990 and claim RSFSR Law trumps
USSR laws
• Economic Reform
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– Gorby reforms make economy worse and he
seems to have no clear plan
• Cautious and unsure with his reforms
• Creates a new organization for Agricultural Plans
Gosagroprom
– Acoomplishes nothing
• 1986 12th 5 Year Plan still focuses on machinery
• Trade defifict explodes from 17 to 64 bi. rubles
($100 bi.) Why?
– Costs of western tech. imports
– Alcohol sales fall
– Oil and gas prices fall mid 1980s
– When further reforms fail Gorby introduces :
“Regulated Market” (Law on State Enterprises)
• Like NEP small free market businesses and co-ops
• State industry can sell part of production on free
market
• Economic Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
– Law on Cooperatives 1988
• Can set their own prices and sell overseas
• 13,000 1988 to 245,000 in 1991
– Problem is they have to bribe state officials
– State officials steal state assets and sell them
– Organized Crime expands
– They compete with state enterprises reducing
state income
– Inflation
• Price controls loosened
• Print money
• Law on state Enterprises lets workers elect
managers who tend to raise wages
• Meat and sugar rationed
• 40% of hard currency spent on grain imports (can’t
buy high tech.)
• 1990 GDP down 9%
• Economic Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
• FOLLOWING IS NOT ON EXAM: INFO.
PURPOSES ONLY
• Mar.1990 3rd CPD ends CPSU control
– Multi-Party Elections
– President (Elected) Replaces Politburo
• Gorbachev moves Radical Left
– 500 Days Program (Early 1990)
» Proposes free enterprise, private
property and free market
– Now shifts to right
» Appoints hard liner Bris Pugo
» Sends special forces to crack down
on Baltics
» Massive riots and Gorby shifts to
center
• Economic Reform (con’t)
Gorbachev’s
Reforms
• FOLLOWING IS NOT ON EXAM: INFO.
PURPOSES ONLY
– Gorby now proposes Union treaty granting local
autonomy
– Hardliners Kryuchov (KGB), Pugo (Interior), Yazov
(Defense) try to pressure Gorby to cancel Union
Treaty
– Arrest him when he refuses
– Yeltsin stands on a tank outside the Russion “White
House” soldiers won’t fire on civilian protestors
rallied by Yeltsin
– Coup collapses Gorby comes back but Yeltsin is real
power
– Humiliates Gorby and dismantles the USSR
• Foreign Policy
Gorbachev’s
Foreign Policy
– 1985 Gorbachev seeks better relations with the
West
• Wants to cut defense spending to increase domestic
spending
• Lack technology to match SDI
• Wants to defuse Second Cold War
• Wants to leave Afghanistan
• Reasonable Defense Sufficiency
– Use conventional weapons for defense and cut
Nuclear arsenal
– More flexible than past leaders, makes concessions
• Gets along with Reagan and Thatcher
• Reagan recognizes USSR is genuinely fearful
• New Reagan advisors (Weinberger replaced by Carlucci, Schultz,
Powell willing to deal
• Gorby tells Eastern Europe leaders he will not intervene militarrily
• Free to go their own way
• Not much choice as USSR econ. in collapse
• Foreign Policy
Gorbachev’s
Foreign Policy
• Successes
– Geneva Summit Nov. 1985 Reagan and Gorbachev
reach working relationship
– Reykjavik Summit 1986 almost agree to eliminate
nuclear weapons but Reagan won’t give up SDI
– Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty USSR
gives up SS20s and US Pershings and cruise
missiles
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» Gorby agrees to on site inspections and
doesn’t demand Fr/Br. scrap their nukes
Withdraws from Afghanistan Apr. 1998
Reduces Red Army 10% 1988
Conventional Forces Europe Treaty 195,000
US and 195,000 USSR troops in Europe
START I 1600 ICBM Limit cut to 6000 total
warheads
START II Bans MIRVs but both sides
withdraw in 2002