Dissolution of the Soviet Union

The attempted self-coup in August 1991, Moscow. Eventually leading to the Soviet dissolution.

The dissolution of the Soviet Union was a geopolitical and one of the biggest events of the 20th century ever since. It started when Estonia declared independence on 16 November 1988. After that, many Soviet republics followed and eventually all 15 state republics left the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. This marked the end of the long-run Cold War with the United States. With the Soviet Union no longer existed, China became the only major Marxist-Leninist state following economic reforms, and the U.S. became the world's sole superpower.

With the 1989 revolutions, many European nations left communist ideal. The Soviet Union at the time was struggling with the economy and protests following the withdrawal in Afghanistan (see Soviet–Afghan war). In August 1991, a self-coup in the Soviet Union to overthrow Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev failed, leading to the total ban of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The Belovezha Accords which recognized every Soviet republic's sovereignity were signed on 8 December, 1991 and creating the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Kazakhstan was the only Soviet republic at the time until 16 December. On 21 December, every former Soviet republic joined the CIS except Georgia and Baltic states. Ultimately, on 26 December, Gorbachev resigned, officially dissolved the Soviet Union. Boris Yeltsin became the president of Russia in the same day. The Soviet flag was taken down from the Kremlin and replaced by the Russian flag. Marking the end of the Cold War.

Dissolution Of The Soviet Union Media

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  Change of life expectancy in the largest republics of the Soviet Union before its dissolution

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  Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987

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  Environmental concerns over the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant drove initial demonstrations in Yerevan.

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  Anti-Soviet rally of about 250,000 in Lithuania, whose Sąjūdis movement helped restore independence

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  Andrei Sakharov, formerly exiled to Gorky, was elected to the Congress of People's Deputies in March 1989.

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  Map of the Eastern Bloc

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  Photos of victims of the April 9 tragedy in Tbilisi, Georgia

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  Meeting in Kurapaty, Belarus, 1989

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  The tragedy of January 20

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  Leonid Kravchuk became Ukraine's leader in 1990.