Perestroika (1985-1991) in the USSR was a large-scale phenomenon in the political, economic and social life of the state. Some people believe that its conduct was an attempt to prevent the collapse of the country, while others, on the contrary, think that it pushed the Union to collapse. Let's find out what perestroika was in the USSR (1985-1991). Briefly try to characterize its causes and consequences.
Background
So, where did perestroika begin in the USSR (1985-1991)? Causes, stages and consequences we will study a little later. Now we will focus on those processes that preceded this period in Russian history.
Like almost all phenomena in our lives, the restructuring of 1985-1991 in the USSR has its own background. The welfare indicators of the population in the 70s of the last century reached an unprecedented level in the country. At the same time, it should be noted that just this period of time includes a significant decrease in the rate of economic growth, for which in the future this whole period with the light hand of M. S. Gorbachev was called the "era of stagnation."
Another negative phenomenon was a fairly frequent shortage of goods, the cause of which researchers call the shortcomings of a planned economy.
To a large extent, the slowdown in industrial development was helped by the export of oil and gas. Just at that time, the USSR became one of the world's largest exporters of these natural resources, which was facilitated by the development of new deposits. At the same time, an increase in the share of oil and gas in the country's GDP made the economic indicators of the USSR significantly dependent on world prices for these resources.
But the very high cost of oil (due to the Arab embargo on the supply of “black gold” to Western countries) helped smooth out most of the negative phenomena in the Soviet economy. The well-being of the country's population was constantly increasing, and most ordinary citizens could not even imagine that soon everything could change. Yes, so cool ...
At the same time, the country's leadership, headed by Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, could not or did not want to fundamentally change something in the management of the economy. High indicators only covered the abscess of economic problems that had accumulated in the USSR, which threatened to break through at any moment, if only the external or internal conditions changed.
It was the change in these conditions that led to the process that is now known as Perestroika in the USSR 1985-1991.
Operation in Afghanistan and sanctions against the USSR
In 1979, the USSR launched a military operation in Afghanistan, which was officially presented as international assistance to the fraternal people. The introduction of Soviet troops into Afghanistan was not approved by the UN Security Council, which served as an excuse for the United States to apply a number of economic measures against the Union that were sanctioned and to incline Western Europe to support some of them.
True, despite all efforts, the United States government did not succeed in freezing the construction of the large-scale Urengoy-Uzhgorod gas pipeline among European states. But even the sanctions that were introduced were able to cause significant damage to the economy of the USSR. And the war in Afghanistan itself also required considerable material costs, and also contributed to increasing the level of discontent of the population.
It was these events that became the first harbingers of the economic collapse of the USSR, but only war and sanctions were clearly not enough to see all the fragility of the economic basis of the Country of Soviets.
Oil price fall
As long as the price of oil kept at around $ 100 per barrel, the Soviet Union could not pay much attention to the sanctions of Western states. Since the 80s, there has been a significant decline in the global economy, which contributed to the fall in oil prices due to lower demand. In addition, in 1983, OPEC countries refused fixed prices for this resource, and Saudi Arabia significantly increased volumes of raw material production. This only contributed to the continuation of the collapse of prices for "black gold". If in 1979 they asked for $ 104 per barrel of oil, then in 1986 these figures fell to $ 30, that is, the cost fell almost 3.5 times.
This could not have a positive effect on the economy of the USSR, which in Brezhnev’s times fell heavily dependent on oil exports. In conjunction with the sanctions of the United States and other Western countries, as well as flaws in the ineffective management system, a sharp drop in the cost of “black gold” could lead to the collapse of the entire economy of the country.
The new leadership of the USSR, headed by M. S. Gorbachev, who became the leader of the state in 1985, understood that it was necessary to significantly change the structure of economic management, as well as carry out reforms in all spheres of the country's life. It was an attempt to introduce these reforms that led to the emergence of such a phenomenon as perestroika (1985-1991) in the USSR.
Reasons for adjustment
What exactly were the causes of perestroika in the USSR (1985-1991)? Briefly dwell on them below.
The main reason that prompted the country's leadership to think about the need for significant changes - both in the economy and in the socio-political system as a whole - was the understanding that under the existing conditions the country is facing an economic collapse or, at best, a significant decline in all respects. Naturally, no one among the country's leaders even thought about the reality of the collapse of the USSR in 1985.
The main factors that served as the impetus for understanding the full depth of the ripening economic, managerial and social problems were:
- Military operation in Afghanistan.
- The introduction of sanctions against the USSR.
- The fall in oil prices.
- Imperfection of the control system.
These were the main reasons for Perestroika in the USSR 1985-1991.
Start of adjustment
How did perestroika 1985-1991 begin in the USSR?
As mentioned above, initially few people thought that those negative factors that existed in the economy and social life of the USSR could really lead to the collapse of the country, therefore, perestroika was originally planned as a correction of certain shortcomings of the system.
The beginning of perestroika can be considered March 1985, when the party leadership elected a relatively young and promising member of the Politburo, Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev. At that time he was 54 years old, which for many would seem not so small, but compared to the previous leaders of the country, he was really young. So, L.I. Brezhnev became secretary general at age 59 and remained at this post until his death, which overtook him at age 75. After him, in fact, the most important state post in the country, Yu. Andropov and K. Chernenko became secretaries-general at 68 and at 73, respectively, but could only live a little more than a year each after coming to power.
This state of affairs spoke of a significant stagnation of cadres in the highest echelons of the party. The appointment by the Secretary-General of such a relatively young and new person in the party leadership as Mikhail Gorbachev was to some extent influenced the solution of this problem.
Gorbachev immediately made it clear that he was going to carry out a number of changes in various fields of activity in the country. True, it was not yet clear how far this would go.
In April 1985, the Secretary General announced the need to accelerate the economic development of the USSR. The term “acceleration” was most often called the first stage of perestroika, which lasted until 1987 and did not imply fundamental changes in the system. His tasks included only the introduction of some administrative reforms. The acceleration also meant an increase in the pace of development of mechanical engineering and heavy industry. But in the end, the actions of the government did not give the desired result.
In May 1985, Gorbachev announced that it was time for everyone to rebuild. It is from this statement that the term “perestroika” originated, but its introduction into widespread use refers to a later period.
I stage of restructuring
It is not necessary to assume that all the goals and tasks that perestroika in the USSR had to solve (1985-1991) were initially named. The stages can be divided into four time periods.
The first stage of perestroika, which was also called "acceleration", can be considered the time from 1985 to 1987. As mentioned above, all the innovations then were mostly administrative in nature. Then, in 1985, an anti-alcohol campaign was launched, the aim of which was to reduce the level of alcoholism in the country, which reached a critical point. But in the course of this campaign, a number of unpopular events were undertaken among the people, which can be considered “excesses”. In particular, a huge number of vine plantations were destroyed, and an actual ban on the availability of alcoholic beverages at family and other celebrations held by party members was introduced. In addition, the anti-alcohol campaign led to a shortage of alcohol in stores and a significant increase in their cost.
At the first stage, the fight against corruption and unearned income of citizens was also declared. The positive aspects of this period include a significant infusion of new cadres into the party leadership who wanted to carry out really significant reforms. Among these people, B. Yeltsin and N. Ryzhkov can be distinguished .
The Chernobyl tragedy that occurred in 1986 demonstrated the inability of the existing system not only to prevent a catastrophe, but also to effectively deal with its consequences. The emergency situation at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant was hidden for several days by the authorities, which endangered millions of people living near the disaster zone. This indicated that the country's leadership was acting by the old methods, which, of course, did not please the population.
In addition, the reforms carried out until then showed their inefficiency, as economic indicators continued to fall, and public dissatisfaction with leadership policies grew more and more. This fact contributed to the recognition by Gorbachev and some other representatives of the party elite of the fact that half measures cannot be dispensed with, but radical reforms must be carried out in order to save the situation.
Adjustment goals
The situation described above contributed to the fact that the country's leadership could not immediately determine the specific goals of perestroika in the USSR (1985-1991). The table below briefly describes them.
| Sphere | Goals |
| Economy | The introduction of elements of market mechanisms to improve the efficiency of the economy |
| Control | Democratization of the management system |
| Society | Democratization of society, publicity |
| International relationships | Normalization of relations with the countries of the Western world |
The main goal that the USSR faced during the years of perestroika in 1985-1991 was to create an effective mechanism for managing the state through systemic reforms.
II stage
It was the above-described tasks that were basic for the leadership of the USSR during the period of perestroika 1985-1991. at the second stage of this process, the beginning of which can be considered 1987.
It was at this time that censorship was significantly relaxed, which was expressed in the so-called publicity policy. It provided for the admissibility of discussion in society with those that had previously either been hushed up or were banned. Of course, this was a significant step towards the democratization of the system, but at the same time it had a number of negative consequences. The flow of open information, to which the society that had been behind the Iron Curtain for decades, was simply not ready, contributed to a radical revision of the ideals of communism, ideological and moral corruption, the emergence of nationalist and separatist sentiments in the country. In particular, in 1988, an interethnic armed conflict began in Nagorno-Karabakh.
It was also allowed to conduct certain types of individual entrepreneurial activity, in particular in the form of cooperatives.
In foreign policy, the USSR made significant US concessions in the hope of lifting the sanctions. Gorbachev’s meetings with American President Reagan were quite frequent, during which disarmament agreements were reached. In 1989, Soviet troops were finally withdrawn from Afghanistan.
But it should be noted that at the second stage of perestroika the tasks set for building democratic socialism were not achieved.
Perestroika in stage III
The third stage of perestroika, which began in the second half of 1989, was marked by the fact that the processes taking place in the country began to get out of the control of the central government. Now she was forced to adapt only to them.
A parade of sovereignty has passed across the country . Republican authorities proclaimed the priority of local laws and decrees over the All-Union, if they conflicted with each other. And in March 1990, Lithuania announced its secession from the Soviet Union.
In 1990, a presidential post was introduced, to which deputies elected Mikhail Gorbachev. In the future, it was planned to conduct the election of the president by direct popular vote.
However, it became clear that the previous format of relations between the republics of the USSR could no longer be maintained. It was planned to reorganize it into a “soft federation” called the Union of Sovereign States. The 1991 coup , whose supporters wanted to preserve the old system, put an end to this idea.
Post-adjustment
After the suppression of the putsch, most of the republics of the USSR announced their withdrawal from its composition and declared independence. And what is the result? What did perestroika lead to? The collapse of the USSR ... 1985-1991 passed in unsuccessful efforts to stabilize the situation in the country. In the fall of 1991, an attempt was made to transform the former superpower into the SSG confederation, which ended in failure.
The main task that stood at the fourth stage of perestroika, which is also called post-perestroika, was the liquidation of the USSR and the formation of relations between the republics of the former Union. This goal was actually achieved in Belovezhskaya Pushcha at a meeting of the leaders of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Later, the majority of other republics joined Belovezhskaya accords.
By the end of 1991, the USSR had already formally ceased to exist.
Summary
We studied the processes that took place in the USSR during the perestroika period (1985-1991), briefly dwelled on the causes and stages of this phenomenon. Now is the time to talk about the outcome.
First of all, it is necessary to say about the collapse that perestroika suffered in the USSR (1985-1991). The results for the leading circles and for the country as a whole were disappointing. The country broke up into a number of independent states, in some of them armed conflicts broke out, a catastrophic decline in economic indicators occurred, the communist idea was completely discredited, and the CPSU was eliminated.
The main goals set by perestroika were never achieved. On the contrary, the situation has become even worse. The only positive aspects can be seen only in the democratization of society and in the emergence of market relations. The USSR during the perestroika period of 1985-1991 was a state that was not able to withstand external and internal challenges.