Mikhail Gorbachev: Architect of Perestroika and the End of the Soviet Union
Mikhail Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990.
Life and Career
He was born on 2 March 1931, in Privolnoye, Stavropol Krai, Russia. He joined the Komsomol (Young Communist League) in 1946 and worked for a state farm in Stavropol for four years.
In 1952, he joined the Communist Party and entered law school at Moscow State University. He graduated with a law degree in 1955 and held a number of posts in the Komsomol and regular party organizations in Stavropol, becoming the first secretary in 1970. In 1971, he joined the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and in 1978, he was appointed secretary of agriculture. In 1979 he became a candidate member of the Politburo, and in 1980 he became a full member.
Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1985. During his time in office, Gorbachev implemented a range of political, economic, and social reforms, including the introduction of limited market-oriented reforms, the loosening of restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, and the promotion of a more open political system. These reforms aimed to modernize and liberalize the Soviet economy and political system, but they also led to the eventual collapse of the Soviet Union.
Under Gorbachev’s leadership, the Soviet Union signed arms control agreements with the United States, including the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty and the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. He also pursued diplomatic relations with Western countries and played a key role in ending the Cold War.
Despite his efforts at reform, Gorbachev faced opposition from hardliners within the Communist Party, and his leadership was challenged by a failed coup attempt in 1991. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union later that year, Gorbachev resigned as General Secretary and retired from politics. He died on 30 August 2022, in Moscow, Russia.
Award and Legacy
In 1988, he won the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament, and Development. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for “leading the peace process which today characterizes the international community”.
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