Coup in Russia, 1991
The Fall of the Soviet Union, 1991
- Gorbachev made a couple of major changes in 1990
- First was he introduced 'rule of law'
- He felt that socialism could be achieved within a democratic state
- Second was the '500 day plan' dealing with the deficit
- Finally, the Union Treaty giving the republics more autonomy
- An attempt coup d'etat takes place in Aug. 1991
- He is saved by Boris Yeltsin who became the effective leader of the country
- Gorbachev became a lame duck leader and Yeltsin made the final step to outlaw the Communist party in the Russian Republic
- Dec 1, 1991 an independence vote is held in the Ukraine which voted favour of independence
- This led to the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the end of the USSR
Interesting Fact
Many of the old Soviet Union states still have strong economic ties with each other.
Quote
''It is especially important to encourage unorthodox thinking when the situation is critical: At such moments every new word and fresh thought is more precious than gold. Indeed, people must not be deprived of the right to think their own thoughts.''
- Boris Yeltsin
- Boris Yeltsin
Subjunctive Question
If it were not for the indepedence vote in Ukraine what would have ended the USSR?
Summary
In 1991 an attempt at a Coup D'etat takes place in Russia because of Gorbachevs major changed he made in 1990. Fortunately, he is saved by Boris Yeltsin who became the effective leader of the country. Yeltsin outlawed the Communist party in the Russia Repbulic while Gorbachev became a lame duck leader. Dec 1,1991, Ukrain held an independece vote which resulted in Ukraine's indepedence. This vote led to the formation of the Commonwealth of Indepedence States and the end of the USSR.