The most controversial leader of the Soviet Union is definitely Mikhail Gorbachev. The biography of the first and last president of the USSR still causes ambiguous attitudes among his fellow citizens.
Foreigners have a more positive attitude towards the personality of Mikhail Gorbachev: some citizens of post-Soviet countries blame him for the collapse of the USSR, while others, on the contrary, defend him and consider him the best head of the country.
Childhood and adolescence
On March 2, 1931, a boy was born into the family of ordinary rural residents of the Gorbachevs, Sergei and Marina, who was named Misha. The family lived in the Stavropol Territory, in the village of Privolnoye. He spent his childhood and youth in his native village, helped his father with sowing in the field and went to the local school.
When the boy was 10 years old, the Great Patriotic War began, and his father was taken to the front. The village in which Misha and his mother lived was occupied by the Germans. I had to live in such a difficult situation for almost six months, and after the Nazis retreated, another terrible news came - my father died.
Despite the difficulties, the son supported his mother and helped her. While studying at school, he worked hard in the evenings on a local collective farm and by the age of 15 he managed to become an assistant combine operator.
There is debate about Mikhail Gorbachev's Jewish origins. It’s as if the family’s real surname is Gaider. However, there is no significant evidence on this matter.
Biography of Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev was born on March 2, 1931 in the village of Privolnoye (North Caucasus region). He grew up in a simple working-class family, so from an early age he was accustomed to work.
His father Sergei Andreevich was Russian, and his mother Maria Panteleevna was Ukrainian. An interesting fact is that both grandfathers of the future Secretary General were repressed in the 30s. He was the eldest child of 5 children to his parents.
Childhood and youth
At the height of the Great Patriotic War (1941-1945), Gorbachev survived the German occupation of Stavropol. This was one of the most difficult periods in his biography. Already at the age of 13, he had to combine his studies with work on the collective farm.
Soon Mikhail became an assistant combine operator. He coped well with his duties and was also distinguished by his diligence and hard work. For this, while still a schoolboy, he was awarded the Order of the Red Banner of Labor. While studying in the 10th grade, he became a candidate member of the CPSU.
After graduating from school in 1950 with a silver medal, Mikhail Gorbachev entered the Faculty of Law at Moscow State University. Soon he became a member of the CPSU. Having received a diploma with honors, the guy took the position of first secretary of the Komsomol city committee of Stavropol.
Starting a career in politics
In 1966, after four years of work in the party in his native region, he was appointed first secretary of the city committee in the city of Stavropol. By today's standards, this position is comparable to the position of governor of a constituent entity of Russia.
Gorbachev was a hard worker, but due to his gentle nature, he could not demand the same from his subordinates. This trait will resonate in his future political activities.
In 1971 he became a member of the Central Committee of the CPSU, three years later he began to be periodically elected as a deputy to the Supreme Council of the country.
Already in 1978 he was elected to the post of secretary of the Central Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and in 1980 he was accepted into the Politburo.
In what year did Gorbachev become President of the USSR?
In January 1987, the leader of the Communist Party called for democratization: the introduction of such democratic elements into the political process as elections from several candidates.
In June 1988, at the XXVII Congress of the CPSU, he launched radical reforms aimed at reducing party control over the state apparatus.
In December 1988, the Supreme Council approved the creation of the Council of People's Deputies as the new legislative body of the Soviet Union, adopting corresponding amendments to the Constitution. Elections were held throughout the country in March and April 1989.
But in what year did Gorbachev become President of the USSR? The necessary amendments were made on March 15, 1990. Before this, the head of the Soviet Union was formally the Chairman of the Supreme Council. Although the head of state was to be elected through direct secret voting by all citizens of the country, as an exception, this right was delegated to the Third Congress of People's Deputies. 03/15/1990 Gorbachev was elected President of the USSR and took the oath of office on the same day.
As General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee and President of the USSR
In 1985, the then current General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Konstantin Chernenko, died and Mikhail Gorbachev was nominated to his position. What simplified the nomination was the fact that during Chernenko’s illness it was Gorbachev who was practically responsible for his duties.
So in 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev was elected Secretary General of the ruling Communist Party of the USSR. In March 1990, he was elected the first President of the Soviet Union.
During the August putsch in 1991, the Emergency Committee removed Gorbachev from the post of head of state. However, he was the president of the USSR until the collapse of the union, that is, until December 1991.
In November, the state prosecutor's office opened a criminal case against Gorbachev for treason. Because a couple of months before this, the president signed a decree granting sovereignty to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. However, the case was closed on the second day and was never reopened.
During the years of his reign, Gorbachev managed to completely change the social and political sphere of the Soviet Union, not always in a positive direction. In addition, influence many political events abroad.
How Gorbachev ruined the USSR
The head of the country deliberately killed her. Gorbachev deliberately destroyed the USSR. I have no doubt about it. One of the stages in the destruction of a superpower was the liquidation of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA), an economic bloc led by our country.
How was this done? I bring to your attention a fragment of my speech to the youth of the capital.
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PS Full version of the lecture:
«Nikolay Starikov:
The Western economy is and has always been in a difficult situation. She never had any endless prosperity. In the seventies, inflation in the United States was double-digit (you can read and look). This was at a time when the Fed was headed by such a person - Paul Volcker. In general, he kept a very high refinancing rate, and accordingly, factories there were closed. Read, it’s very similar to what’s happening here now: high bank interest rates lead to business stopping, and economic life in the country is very, very sluggish. You know, like in a freezer: all processes suddenly slow down sharply. A high bank rate immediately leads to this slowdown.
The West has always had the goal of destroying the Soviet Union simply as a competitor. Remove the competitor, because in free competition he was a real problem and, since he was oriented differently (money did not play the most important thing in this system), the Soviet Union always had a chance to win.
Therefore, the real salvation of the Western economy was Gorbachev’s coming to power in 1985. The story is very murky.
Firstly, the rise to power of Andropov, who died very quickly. Did they help him? The question is complex.
Next is the intermediate figure of Chernenko. The story around him is also very murky, his death is also very quick.
Gorbachev's rise to power. Voting within the Politburo, when a certain member of the Politburo (I will not delete the last name) was on a visit to the United States, they did everything so that he would not have time to vote in the Politburo.
Gorbachev’s main rival was Romanov, the leader of Leningrad. All sorts of false rumors were spread about him. I myself remember how, as a child, my mother told me that “at his daughter’s wedding, he took a service from the Hermitage.” It is now known that this is all a lie. Who started these rumors? For what? That is, the West helped Gorbachev come to power with all the forces he had at that time. By the way, it’s interesting: Gorbachev’s first visit as the leader of the country was to Great Britain, and not to any socialist countries.
Then Gorbachev simply consistently began to dismantle the state. This can't be a mistake. This can't be stupid. These are conscious steps to dismantle the state. The Soviet Union was not a victim of some economic problems, it became a victim of betrayal by the leadership of the Soviet Union
- this is what you need to understand. Because when liberals say that “the Soviet economy was inefficient and had no chance,” they are denying reality. They say that China does not exist, because in China the economy was much less developed than in the Soviet Union, and we see how China is developing - it’s all there. When liberals say that the Soviet Union was doomed, it means China is doomed, it means there is no China, it means China has already collapsed. That is, it is a denial of reality.
Therefore, you and I must understand that our country was betrayed by the leadership. Why did Gorbachev do this? This is the question to ask him. I'm afraid he won't answer it, of course. But, nevertheless, this is a rhetorical question. Maybe there was some dirt on him, maybe he was recruited somewhere else. Because all idiocy has a limit.
In fact, let's call a spade a spade: the king of a huge state, which had allies, which had enormous influence in the world, simply, for no reason, divided and destroyed his entire system.
To make you understand how deliberate this was, I will give one example. I hope you know what the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) is. Perhaps this abbreviation is unfamiliar to the younger generation. The CMEA countries (that was the term) were an economic bloc that included Eastern European states and others. Such an economic European union of that time was only socialist, where there was the Soviet Union. The unit of payment in this association was the transferable ruble. It had nothing in common with the ruble that was used in the Soviet Union. It was a completely separate unit. It was the first experiment in creating a supranational currency. At that time there was no ecus, no euro, nothing. This project was developed under Stalin. It was developed in 1949, but was launched after Stalin’s death; in my opinion, in 1955 or 1956, CMEA began to work.
What was the meaning of existence? The result was a kind of closed system, within which states traded among themselves for this artificially created currency. It did not exist in paper form. It existed only in the form of non-cash payments, and only in relations between countries. That is, Hungary can buy something from Romania, Romania can buy something from the Soviet Union, the Soviet Union can buy something from Czechoslovakia, and Czechoslovakia can buy something from Hungary. And this money goes around.
In order for this money to be created, an emission center (bank) was created - the International Bank for Economic Development. This bank issued transferable rubles for specific orders. It was an emission center in the same way as today the Western emission centers of the Federal Reserve System, the Bank of England, and the Bank of Japan create money for specific things. Someone takes money from them for a specific project in order to either buy something or start building. This is very important: our own emission center.
Money has been created, and with this money the Soviet Union, for example, buys green peas in Hungary. Hungary received this money, and it can buy oil from the Soviet Union. But the amount of money is always related to the amount of goods. What does this lead to? This leads to the fact that the economy begins to develop in the countries of the socialist community (CMEA). That is, they ordered green peas for you, you have already built a plant, and are starting to produce. You can increase production, look for new suppliers outside the CMEA. You can sell wherever you want for foreign currency. That is, you get a sales market.
Therefore, by the time of the collapse of the socialist camp, industry was developed in all Eastern European countries. Now it is all destroyed. Hungary is a factory for the production of Ikarus, buses, everyone went there. What's wrong with him now? Closed He's gone. And so on, and so on, and so on. Moreover, within the framework of the socialist community, the Soviet Union did not export oil or timber. A very large percentage of our exports were in the form of machines, in the form of mechanisms, in the form of machine tools. That is, we had a powerful machine tool industry, machines for the production of machines. All this happened. Even if they were not so beautiful, there was a sales market and it was at a fairly high level.
In general, it must be said that there was a technical lag in some consumer goods everywhere compared to the West. But in some serious areas, in breakthrough technologies, we have never lagged behind. We were the first to fly into space, what a lag. That is, in this we have always been at the level. And in some places they were even overtaken.
Now what's going on? You and I understand that within the socialist community, trade is carried out for this currency. In the nineties, with one stroke of the pen, Gorbachev forced the CMEA to decide that trade from tomorrow would be conducted only in dollars. Why? Well, the whole world trades in dollars, let’s do the same.
What did this lead to?
First. Do these countries have dollars? No. They have transferable rubles. That is, no one can buy anything from anyone from tomorrow. What does this lead to? This causes all businesses to immediately shut down. Because they can't buy components, and they can't sell anything to anyone. That is, the entire economy within the socialist countries came to a standstill in one day. This is just the beginning.
Further. Okay, your factories are shut down. But you need oil just to make cars run. You are in Hungary. You need oil. You used to buy transferable rubles in the Soviet Union. What is the Soviet Union telling you now? Please, we will sell you oil for dollars. Do you have dollars? No. What are you doing? You go to someone who has dollars. You go to the IMF, to the United States of America, say: “ Give us dollars
".
That is, he, Gorbachev, immediately created a demand for other people’s money. That is, he transferred control over this entire zone into the wrong hands. We had our own emission center
, we determined how much money and so on.
You give it to the dollar
zone, and
they
decide.
That is, Hungary is not coming to you “ buy our peas, give us oil
.”
She goes there - “ buy our peas, buy our Icaruses
.” This means that demand for dollars is created and influence over these states is transferred into the wrong hands.
Then the following happens. The IMF gives Hungary oil and obliges it to buy oil from Norway. Right? Who gives the money determines. This means that we are also losing our sales markets. I'm not even saying that they immediately stopped buying all of our mechanical engineering, not because it was bad. The one who gives loans gives them against what they would buy from him. Well, tell me, could this be a mistake? This is pure sabotage.
In one day, he destroyed his own economy, because he deprived them of sales markets, destroyed their economy and created the ground for so-called revolutions, for dissatisfaction with the socialist system and lost this zone of influence. And at the same time, he quickly withdrew our army from all these states.
Typing: Natalya Alshaeva Editorial: Natalya Rizaeva https://poznavatelnoe.tv - educational Internet television"
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Foreign policy
Mikhail Gorbachev's foreign policy is primarily known for making peace with the United States. It was under his rule that the Cold War finally ended.
Finally, we managed to agree on nuclear disarmament of countries with US President Ronald Reagan.
The famous date still remains February 15, 1989, when the final withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan took place.
This also contributed to good relations with Western countries, and relations with China also improved.
In 1990, he had a significant influence on the unification of the GDR and the Federal Republic of Germany. The German post-war issue was finally resolved, the wall fell.
A brief overview of foreign policy clearly demonstrates that, having lost old allies, the USSR acquired new ones in the form of NATO countries.
For his activities on the world political stage, for promoting peace and international cooperation, Mikhail Gorbachev gained respect and received the Nobel Prize in 1990.
"New Thinking" Abroad
In international affairs, Gorbachev sought to improve relations and trade with the West. He established close contacts with a number of Western leaders - German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, US Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who once said that she liked Mr. Gorbachev and could have sex with him. case.
On October 11, 1986, M. Gorbachev and P. Reagan met for the first time in Reykjavik, Iceland, to discuss the issue of reducing medium-range missiles in Europe. Much to the surprise of advisers on both sides, they agreed to withdraw such systems and set a global limit on them of 100 warheads. This led to the signing of the Short- and Medium-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty in 1987.
In February 1988, M. Gorbachev announced the withdrawal of troops from the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. The operation was completed the following year, although civil war continued as the mujahideen attempted to overthrow the pro-Soviet regime of Mohammed Najibullah. An estimated 15,000 Soviet citizens were killed as a result of the conflict between 1979 and 1989.
Also in 1988, M. Gorbachev announced that the Soviet Union would abandon the Brezhnev Doctrine, allowing the Eastern Bloc countries to determine their own internal policies. Non-interference in the affairs of other Warsaw Pact states turned out to be the most important of Moscow's foreign policy reforms. In 1989, when communism collapsed, it led to a series of revolutions in Eastern Europe. With the exception of Romania, popular protests against pro-Soviet communist regimes were peaceful.
When Gorbachev became President of the USSR, the Soviet Union established diplomatic relations with the Vatican, and a final settlement agreement was signed with Germany. In addition, an investigation began into the murders of Polish prisoners of war in Katyn.
The weakening of Soviet hegemony in Eastern Europe actually ended the Cold War, for which on October 15, 1990, 7 months after M. S. Gorbachev was elected President of the USSR, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Domestic policy
In contrast to the positive foreign policy, the internal state of the country after Mikhail Gorbachev came to power has more negative reviews. The reforms carried out by the head of state were considered inconsistent and thoughtless.
From the very beginning of his reign, the Secretary General took up the growth and acceleration of the Soviet economy. It was supposed to prepare the people for perestroika. Then the famous “dry” anti-alcohol law was adopted, which was carried out incorrectly. As a result, vineyards were destroyed in the country, but home brewing developed.
In April 1986, the most famous event in the world during Gorbachev's reign took place - the disaster at the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl. There were many dissatisfied people who condemned the hushing up of the scale of the tragedy not only in the world, but also in the country.
At the beginning of 1987, perestroika began.
The head of state stated that from now on it will be the ideology of the state.
Another name for perestroika is the policy of glasnost.
Its essence was freedom of speech, the emergence of public organizations, and discussion of state policy at rallies.
At this time, previously banned works were published. By the end of Gorbachev’s reign, the “semi-freedom” of speech of perestroika finally left the control of the state.
It was perestroika that finally removed the Iron Curtain, and the Soviet people learned about life in the West. Foreign films and music began to appear. Western culture began to enter and influence the lifestyle of the inhabitants of the USSR.
Awards
- 1988 - Prize of the International Organization “World Without War”
- 1988 - Indira Gandhi Peace Prize
- 1989 - commemorative medal “Personality of the Year” of the International Jury “Personality of the Year”
- 1989 - Golden Dove for Peace Award for contribution to peace and disarmament
- 1990 – Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his leading role in the peace process, which characterizes an important part of the life of the international community
- 1990 - Albert Einstein Peace Prize for his contribution to the struggle for peace and mutual understanding between peoples
- 1990 - honorary title “Humanist of the Century” and the Albert Schweitzer Medal of Honor
- 1990 - International Fiuggi Award as a person whose activities in the political and social fields can serve as an exceptional example of the struggle for the promotion of human rights
- 1991 - Martin Luther King Jr. International Peace Prize for a World Without Violence for his outstanding role in the struggle for world peace and human rights
- 1992 - Benjamin M. Cardoso Award for Democracy
- 1993 - Sir Winston Churchill Award in recognition of his contribution to peace in the Middle East
- 1997 - King David Award
- 1998 - National Freedom Award for Anti-Oppression
- 2005 - Patriarch Athenagoras Prize for Human Rights
- 2010 - Dresden Prize for Nuclear Disarmament
After resignation
After his resignation in 1991, Mikhail Gorbachev's life became much more measured and calmer. He retired from political activities, but continued to actively participate in the public life of the country.
In 1996, he nevertheless tried to return to politics and nominated himself as a candidate for president of the country. It was not possible to achieve the goal; the people still could not forgive the former ruler for the collapse of the USSR.
There is often information on the Internet about Gorbachev’s poor health, death and funeral. However, all this is speculation. The last president of the USSR is alive and well.
Currently lives in Germany.
He came there because of pressure and criticism against him. In addition, the former secretary general himself criticizes the current government of the country.
The question of how old Mikhail Gorbachev is is also common. As of 2021, he is 88 years old.
Independence movements
On January 10, 1991, USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev presented an ultimatum to the Supreme Council of Lithuania, demanding the restoration of the legality of the Constitution and the annulment of all unconstitutional laws. The next day, he approved the Soviet army's attempt to overthrow the Lithuanian government. As a result, at least 14 civilians were killed and more than 600 were injured in Vilnius from 11 to 13 January. The strong reaction of the West and the actions of Russian democratic forces put the President and government of the USSR in an awkward position, as news emerged about support for the Lithuanians from Western democracies.
Gorbachev's response to growing republican separatism was to develop the Union Treaty, which created a truly voluntary federation in the increasingly democratized Soviet Union. The new treaty was supported by the Central Asian republics, which needed the economic power and markets of the USSR to prosper. However, more radical advocates of change, such as RSFSR President Boris Yeltsin, became increasingly convinced of the need for a rapid transition to a market economy and were more than happy to contemplate the disintegration of the Soviet Union if this was necessary to achieve their goals.
In contrast to the warm attitude of the reformers to the new treaty, the conservative apparatchiks, who still had influence within the CPSU and the military leadership, were against anything that could lead to the collapse of the USSR. On the eve of the signing of the Union Treaty, the conservatives struck their blow.
Family and personal life
Mikhail Gorbachev was married only once in his entire life to Raisa Maksimovna, nee Titarenko. The couple met young while studying at university. In 1953 they held a modest wedding.
The wife always supported her husband in his work affairs and helped him as much as she could until the children appeared, or rather their only daughter, Irina.
After her husband was elected to the post of General Secretary and President of the USSR, Raisa Maksimovna became the real first lady of the state, which was unique and unusual for the country.
She was involved in charitable foundations and actively participated in the public life of the country. She met and organized receptions for the wives of presidents of other countries.
In 1999, Gorbachev suffered a sad loss - the death of his beloved wife Raisa. Now he is supported by his daughter Irina and granddaughters Ksenia and Anastasia, as well as great-granddaughter Alexandra.
From party functionary to general secretary
After this, the promising party worker had the opportunity to both begin a scientific career and become a prominent KGB officer (in 1969, Yu. Andropov almost appointed him as his deputy).
Gorbachev during his political career
However, Gorbachev further moved up the party career levels and in 1973 became a candidate member of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee. Immediately after this, he could have become the head of the Propaganda Department of the CPSU Central Committee, but, on the advice of Suslov, he refused. He could have become the Prosecutor General of the USSR, but his candidacy was not approved. The prevailing circumstances slowly but surely led him to the pinnacle of political power in the country.
On November 27, at the next Plenum he was elected Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. Next month the Gorbachev family is moving to live in the capital.
Having outlived two more general secretaries, who in total ruled for only about 3 years, M. S. Gorbachev waited for his finest hour. At a meeting of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee on March 11, 1985, he was elected to the post of General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. Gorbachev, 54, became the country's youngest first leader in recent years. Many, tired of weak old men in power, wanted something new and decisive changes. The Soviet people received all this in full. Even more than many would like.
Criticism of Gorbachev's rule
Among foreigners, Mikhail Sergeevich is a fairly well-known, revered and respected person due to his correct Western policy. It was as a result of his efforts that the GDR and West Germany were reunified, relations with the United States improved, and the Cold War ended.
The assessment of the activities of the last president of the USSR is quite contradictory among his fellow citizens. Russians respect him for returning private property to the people and introducing a multi-party system. It was during Gorbachev's reign that free elections were held for the first time.
However, many blame him for the collapse of the Soviet Union. Whether the collapse of the union had a positive or negative impact on the country is still being debated. Perhaps this is where the ambiguous attitude towards the former ruler of the country lies.
