The Soviet Breakup

Jose CanalesKaleb Marcotte2nd Hour

During a long Cold War the USSR became really weak

Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev passed a policy that gave the citizens the freedom of speech

This policy was called 'Glasnost'

The reform caused many problems, people began to speak out against the government

First Estonia asked to secede from the republic

This triggered many other countries to also begin speaking out against the government in hope to secede

All of this caused many bloody disputes

Georgia, Ukraine, Moldova, Belorussia, and the Central Asian republics kept pushing to secede

In August of 1991 the USSR was giving up

A group of communist kidnapped Gorbachev and later in August 19 announced that Gorbachev was really ill

Many protests broke out in major cities in Russia

The were ordered to hold back the protestors but they also rebelled

Knowing that they had lost the USSR finally gave up in December 26, 1991

Lithuanians in Vilnius. Lithuania was the first Country to secede from the USSR

Citizens of soviet Azerbaijan block off military tanks off the road. January 22, 1990.

Soviet paratroopers inspect Lithuanian weapons. The Gorbachev forced Lithuanians to Surrender their weapons. March 26, 1990

Lithuanians protesting in Vilnius. This wall protected the Lithuanians from a possible Soviet army attack on them.

A Soviet soldier waving the Russian flag as armed troops leave Moscow.

Definitions

Periphery: the edge or outskirts, as of a city or urban area.

Reform: the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory.

Restructuring: to change, alter, or restore the structure

Perestoika:

Russian. the program of economic and political reform in the Soviet Union initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1986.

Resourceshttp://www.theatlantic.com/

http://www.coldwar.org/