The initial period of the Cold War where. Science in the Cold War

The main events of international politics in the second half of the 20th century were determined by the Cold War between two superpowers - the USSR and the USA.

Its consequences are felt to this day, and crisis moments in relations between Russia and the West are often called echoes of the Cold War.

How did the Cold War begin?

The term “Cold War” belongs to the pen of the novelist and publicist George Orwell, who used this phrase in 1945. However, the beginning of the conflict is associated with a speech by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, which he delivered in 1946 in the presence of American President Harry Truman.

Churchill declared that an “iron curtain” had been erected in the middle of Europe, to the east of which there was no democracy.

Churchill's speech had the following prerequisites:

• establishment of communist governments in states liberated by the Red Army from fascism;
• the rise of the leftist underground in Greece (which led to civil war);
• the strengthening of communists in Western European countries such as Italy and France.

Soviet diplomacy also took advantage of this, laying claims to the Turkish straits and Libya.

The main signs of the outbreak of the Cold War

In the first months after the victorious May 1945, on the wave of sympathy for the Eastern ally in the anti-Hitler coalition, Soviet films were freely shown in Europe, and the attitude of the press towards the USSR was neutral or friendly. In the Soviet Union, they temporarily forgot about the cliches that represented the West as the kingdom of the bourgeoisie.

With the onset of the Cold War, cultural contacts were curtailed, and the rhetoric of confrontation prevailed in diplomacy and the media. The people were told briefly and clearly who their enemy was.

All over the world there were bloody clashes between the allies of one side or another, and the Cold War participants themselves started an arms race. This is the name given to the buildup of weapons of mass destruction, primarily nuclear, in the arsenals of the Soviet and American military.

Military spending drained state budgets and slowed post-war economic recovery.

Causes of the Cold War - briefly and point by point

The conflict that began had several reasons:

1. Ideological - the intractability of contradictions between societies built on different political foundations.
2. Geopolitical - the parties feared each other's dominance.
3. Economic - the desire of the West and the communists to use the economic resources of the opposite side.

Stages of the Cold War

The chronology of events is divided into 5 main periods

First stage - 1946-1955

During the first 9 years, a compromise was still possible between the victors of fascism, and both sides were searching for it.

The United States strengthened its position in Europe thanks to the economic assistance program under the Marshall Plan. Western countries joined NATO in 1949, and the Soviet Union successfully tested nuclear weapons.

In 1950, the Korean War broke out, with both the USSR and the United States involved to varying degrees. Stalin dies, but the Kremlin's diplomatic position does not change significantly.

Second stage - 1955-1962

The communists face opposition from the populations of Hungary, Poland and the GDR. In 1955, an alternative to the Western Alliance appeared - the Warsaw Pact Organization.

The arms race is moving to the stage of creating intercontinental missiles. A side effect of military developments was the exploration of space, the launch of the first satellite and the first cosmonaut of the USSR. The Soviet bloc is strengthening at the expense of Cuba, where Fidel Castro comes to power.

Third stage - 1962-1979

After the Cuban Missile Crisis, the parties are trying to curb the military race. In 1963, a treaty was signed banning atomic tests in the air, space and under water. In 1964, the conflict in Vietnam began, provoked by the West's desire to defend this country from leftist rebels.

In the early 1970s, the world entered the era of “international détente.” Its main characteristic is the desire for peaceful coexistence. The parties limit strategic offensive weapons and prohibit biological and chemical weapons.

Leonid Brezhnev's peace diplomacy in 1975 culminated in the signing of the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe by 33 countries in Helsinki. At the same time, the joint Soyuz-Apollo program was launched with the participation of Soviet cosmonauts and American astronauts.

The fourth stage - 1979-1987

In 1979, the Soviet Union sent the army to Afghanistan to install a puppet government. In the wake of worsening contradictions, the United States refused to ratify the SALT II treaty, signed earlier by Brezhnev and Carter. The West is boycotting the Moscow Olympics.

President Ronald Reagan showed himself to be a tough anti-Soviet politician by launching the SDI program - Strategic Defense Initiatives. American missiles are being deployed in close proximity to the territory of the Soviet Union.

Fifth period - 1987-1991

This stage was given the definition of “new political thinking.”

The transfer of power to Mikhail Gorbachev and the beginning of perestroika in the USSR meant the resumption of contacts with the West and a gradual abandonment of ideological intransigence.

Cold War crises

The Cold War crises in history refer to several periods of greatest aggravation of relations between rival parties. Two of them are the Berlin crises of 1948-1949 and 1961 - associated with the formation of three political entities on the site of the former Reich - the GDR, the Federal Republic of Germany and West Berlin.

In 1962, the USSR placed nuclear missiles in Cuba, threatening the security of the United States in an event called the Cuban Missile Crisis. Subsequently, Khrushchev dismantled the missiles in exchange for the Americans withdrawing missiles from Turkey.

When and how did the Cold War end?

In 1989, the Americans and Russians declared the end of the Cold War. In reality, this meant the dismantling of the socialist regimes in Eastern Europe, right up to Moscow itself. Germany united, the Department of Internal Affairs disintegrated, and then the USSR itself.

Who won the cold war

In January 1992, George W. Bush declared: “With the help of God, America won the Cold War!” His jubilation at the end of the confrontation was not shared by many residents of the countries of the former USSR, where a time of economic turmoil and criminal chaos began.

In 2007, a bill was introduced into the American Congress establishing a medal for participation in the Cold War. For the American establishment, the theme of victory over communism remains an important element of political propaganda.

Results

Why the socialist camp ultimately turned out to be weaker than the capitalist one and what its significance was for humanity are the main final questions of the Cold War. The consequences of these events are felt even in the 21st century. The collapse of the left led to economic growth, democratic change, and a surge of nationalism and religious intolerance in the world.

Along with this, the weapons accumulated during these years are preserved, and the governments of Russia and Western countries act largely based on the concepts and stereotypes learned during the armed confrontation.

The Cold War, which lasted 45 years, is for historians the most important process of the second half of the twentieth century, which determined the contours of the modern world.

Report on the topic:

“COLD WAR”

INTRODUCTION - ORIGINS OF THE COLD WAR

The term “Cold War” was coined by Churchill during his speech in Fulton (USA) on March 5, 1946. No longer the leader of his country, Churchill remained one of the most influential politicians in the world. In his speech, he stated that Europe was divided by the “Iron Curtain” and called on Western civilization to declare war on “communism.” In fact, the war between two systems, two ideologies has not stopped since 1917, however, it took shape as a completely conscious confrontation precisely after the Second World War. Why did World War II essentially become the cradle of the Cold War? At first glance, this seems strange, but if you look at the history of the Second World War, many things will become clearer.

Germany began territorial conquests (Rhineland, Austria), and future allies look at this almost indifferently. Each of the future allies assumed that Hitler’s further steps would be directed in the direction they “needed.” Western countries, to a certain extent, encouraged Hitler by turning a blind eye to many violations of international treaties on the demilitarization of Germany. The most striking example of such a policy is the Munich Treaty of 1938, according to which Czechoslovakia was given to Hitler. The USSR was inclined to view Hitler’s actions as a manifestation of the “general crisis of capitalism” and the aggravation of contradictions between “imperialist predators.” Considering that after Munich, when Western countries actually gave Hitler “carte blanche” in moving to the East, every man for himself, Stalin decided and the USSR concluded a “Non-Aggression Pact” with Hitler and, as it later became known, a secret agreement on division spheres of influence It is now known that Hitler turned out to be unpredictable and started a war against everyone at once, which, in the end, destroyed him. But even in his wildest dreams, Hitler could not have imagined the formation of a coalition, which ultimately emerged victorious in the war. Hitler counted on the fact that the deep contradictions that existed between the future allies were insurmountable, and he was mistaken. Now historians have enough data about Hitler’s personality. And, although they say little good about him, no one considers him a fool, which means that the contradictions he was counting on actually existed. That is, the Cold War had deep roots.

Why did it start only after the Second World War? Obviously, this was dictated by the time itself, the era itself. The allies came out of this war so strong, and the means of warfare became so destructive that it became clear: sorting things out using the old methods was too much of a luxury. However, the desire to harass the other side among the coalition partners has not diminished. To a certain extent, the initiative to start the Cold War belonged to Western countries, for which the power of the USSR, which became obvious during the Second World War, turned out to be a very unpleasant surprise.

So, the Cold War arose shortly after the end of World War II, when the Allies began to take stock of its results. What did they see? Firstly,. Half of Europe found itself in the Soviet zone of influence, and pro-Soviet regimes were feverishly emerging there. Secondly, a powerful wave of liberation movements arose in the colonies against the mother countries. Thirdly, the world quickly polarized and turned into a bipolar one. Fourthly, two superpowers emerged on the world stage, whose military and economic power gave them significant superiority over others. Plus, the interests of Western countries in various parts of the globe are beginning to collide with the interests of the USSR. It was this new state of the world that emerged after the Second World War that Churchill realized faster than others when he proclaimed the “Cold War.”

OPPONENTS(Creation of military blocks)

After the end of World War II, Western European countries and the United States united against the USSR. The Soviet Union, in an effort to protect itself, created a kind of buffer around its border, surrounding itself with countries in which pro-Soviet governments were formed after the end of hostilities. Thus the world was divided into two camps: capitalist and socialist. In both countries, so-called collective security systems were created - military blocs. In April 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created, which included the United States, Canada and Western European countries. In May 1955, the Warsaw Pact was signed. It included (at the time of signing) Albania (later (in 1968) it denounced the Treaty), Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR, Czechoslovakia. The polarization of the world ended, and the created coalitions, led by their leaders, began to fight for influence in third world countries.

Theaters of war “COLD WAR”

What was the Cold War? The first, and perhaps the most obvious expression of it is

Arms race

Its beginning was associated with atomic weapons. As you know, in 1945 the United States became the only nuclear power in the world. During the war with Japan, they detonated atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Strategic superiority led to the fact that the American military began to build various plans for a preventive strike on the USSR. But the American monopoly on nuclear weapons lasted only four years. In 1949, the USSR tested its first atomic bomb. This event was a real shock for the Western world and an important milestone in the Cold War. In the course of further accelerated development in the USSR, nuclear and then thermonuclear weapons were soon created. Fighting has become very dangerous for everyone, and is fraught with very bad consequences. The nuclear potential accumulated over the years of the Cold War was enormous, but the gigantic stockpiles of destructive weapons were of no use, and the costs of their production and storage were growing. If earlier they said “we can destroy you, but you cannot destroy us,” now the wording has changed. They began to say “you can destroy us 38 times, and we can destroy you 64 times!” The debate is fruitless, especially considering that if a war broke out and one of the opponents used nuclear weapons, very soon there would be nothing left not only of him, but of the entire planet.

The arms race was growing at a rapid pace. As soon as one of the sides created some fundamentally new weapon, its opponent threw all its forces and resources into achieving the same thing. Crazy competition affected all areas of the military industry. They competed everywhere: in the creation of the latest small arms systems (the US responded to the Soviet AKM with the M-16), in new designs of tanks, aircraft, ships and submarines, but perhaps the most dramatic competition was in the creation of missile technology. The entire so-called peaceful space in those days was not even the visible part of the iceberg, but a snow cap on the visible part. The USA has overtaken the USSR in the number of nuclear weapons. The USSR overtook the USA in rocket science. The USSR was the first in the world to launch a satellite, and in 1961 it was the first to send a man into space. The Americans could not bear such obvious superiority. The result is their landing on the moon. At this point, the parties reached strategic parity. However, this did not stop the arms race. On the contrary, it has spread to all sectors that have at least some connection with weapons. This could, for example, include the race to create supercomputers. Here the West took unconditional revenge for lagging behind in the field of rocket science, since for purely ideological reasons the USSR missed a breakthrough in this area, equating cybernetics along with genetics to the “corrupt girls of imperialism.”

The arms race has even affected education. After Gagarin's flight, the United States was forced to reconsider the foundations of the education system and introduce fundamentally new teaching methods.

The arms race was subsequently voluntarily suspended by both sides. A number of treaties were concluded limiting the accumulation of weapons. Such as, for example, the Treaty Banning Tests of Nuclear Weapons in the Atmosphere, in Outer Space and Under Submarine (08/5/1963), the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Creation of Nuclear-Free Zones (1968), the SALT-1 agreement (limitation and reduction of strategic weapons) (1972), the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (1972) and many others. Another “front” of the Cold War was

The struggle for influence in third world countries.

Since the achievement of strategic parity (early sixties), the military component of the arms race has gradually been relegated to the background, while the struggle for influence in third world countries has played out on the stage. This term itself was introduced into use due to the increasing influence of non-aligned countries that did not openly side with one of the warring parties. If at first, the very fact of confrontation between two powerful systems on the world map led to a landslide of decolonization (the period of liberation of Africa), then in a later period a circle of states was formed that openly and very effectively used the choice of their political orientation towards one or another superpower. To a certain extent, this includes the countries of so-called Arab socialism, which solved their specific narrow national problems at the expense of the USSR.

The Cold War was fought not only in politics, but also in the field of culture and sports. For example, the United States and many Western European countries boycotted the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. In response, athletes from Eastern European countries boycotted the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 1984. The Cold War was widely reflected in cinema, with propaganda films made by both sides. For the USA it is: “Red Dawn”, “America”, “Rimbaud, First Blood, Part Two”, “Iron Eagle”, “Invasion of the USA”. In the USSR they filmed: “Night Without Mercy”, “Neutral Waters”, “Case in Square 36 80”, “Solo Voyage” and many others. Despite the fact that the films are completely different, they, with varying degrees of talent, showed how bad “they” are and what good guys serve in our army. In a unique and very accurate way, the manifestation of the “Cold War” in art was reflected in a line from a popular song “and even in the field of ballet, we are ahead of the rest..”

Economics is the “ambush regiment of capitalism.”

It is quite obvious that the enormous costs borne by the superpowers could not continue indefinitely, and as a result, the confrontation between the two systems was resolved in the economic sphere. It was this component that ultimately turned out to be decisive. The more efficient economy of the West made it possible not only to maintain military and political parity, but also to satisfy the growing needs of modern man, which, due to purely market economic mechanisms, it was able to competently manipulate. At the same time, the heavyweight economy of the USSR, focused only on the production of weapons and means of production, could not and did not intend to compete with the West in this area. In the end, this was reflected at the political level; the USSR began to lose the fight not only for influence in third world countries, but also for influence within the socialist community.

Hot spots of the Cold War

The Cold War was characterized by the frequent appearance of “hot” spots. Each local conflict was brought to the world stage, thanks to the fact that the Cold War opponents supported the opposing sides. A book could be written about these conflicts - all together and each separately. The authors of this work did not set themselves such global tasks. They just offer a brief look at some of the hot spots.

Korean War.

In 1945, Soviet and American troops liberated Korea from the Japanese army. US troops are located south of the 38th parallel, and the Red Army to the north. Thus, the Korean Peninsula was divided into two parts. In the North, the communists came to power, in the South - the military, relying on the help of the United States. Two states were formed on the peninsula - the northern Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the southern Republic of Korea. The North Korean leadership dreamed of uniting the country, even if only by force of arms.

In 1950, North Korean leader Kim Il Sung visited Moscow and enlisted the support of the Soviet Union. Plans for the “military liberation” of South Korea were also approved by Chinese leader Mao Zedong. At dawn on June 25, 1950, the North Korean army moved to the south of the country. Her offensive was so powerful that within three days she occupied the capital of the South, Seoul. Then the advance of the northerners slowed down, but by mid-September almost the entire peninsula was in their hands. It seemed that only one decisive effort separated the army of the north from final victory. However, on July 7, the UN Security Council voted to send international troops to help South Korea.

And in September, UN troops (mostly American) came to the aid of the southerners. They launched a powerful attack on the North from the area that was still held by the South Korean army. At the same time, troops were landed on the west coast, cutting the peninsula in half. Events began to develop with the same speed in the opposite direction. The Americans occupied Seoul, crossed the 38th parallel and continued their offensive against the DPRK. North Korea was on the brink of complete disaster when China suddenly intervened. The Chinese leadership proposed, without declaring war on the United States, to send troops to help North Korea. In China, they were officially called “people’s volunteers.” In October, about a million Chinese soldiers crossed the border Yalu River and engaged the Americans in battle. Soon the front lined up along the 38th parallel.

The war continued for another three years. During the American offensive in 1950, the Soviet Union sent several air divisions to help North Korea. The Americans were significantly superior to the Chinese in technology. China suffered heavy losses. On July 27, 1953, the war ended with a truce. In North Korea, the government of Kim Il Sung, friendly to the USSR and China, remained in power, accepting the honorary title of “great leader.”

Construction of the Berlin Wall.

In 1955, the division of Europe between East and West finally took shape. However, a clear line of confrontation has not yet completely divided Europe. There was only one open “window” left in it - Berlin. The city was divided in half, with East Berlin being the capital of the GDR, and West Berlin being considered part of the Federal Republic of Germany. Two opposing social systems coexisted within the same city, while every Berliner could easily get “from socialism to capitalism” and back, moving from one street to another. Every day up to 500 thousand people crossed this invisible border in both directions. Many East Germans, taking advantage of the open border, left for the West permanently. Thousands of people were resettled in this way every year, which greatly worried the East German authorities. And in general, the wide-open window in the “Iron Curtain” did not at all correspond to the general spirit of the era.

In August 1961, Soviet and East German authorities decided to close the border between the two parts of Berlin. Tension in the city grew. Western countries protested the division of the city. Finally, in October, the confrontation reached its climax. American tanks lined up at the Brandenburg Gate and on Friedrichstrasse, near the main checkpoints. Soviet combat vehicles came out to meet them. For more than a day, the tanks of the USSR and the USA stood with their guns aimed at each other. Periodically, the tankers turned on their engines, as if preparing for an attack. The tension was somewhat relieved only after the Soviet, and after them, American tanks retreated to other streets. However, Western countries finally recognized the division of the city only ten years later. It was formalized by an agreement between four powers (USSR, USA, England and France), signed in 1971. Throughout the world, the construction of the Berlin Wall was perceived as a symbolic completion of the post-war division of Europe.

Cuban Missile Crisis.

On January 1, 1959, the revolution, led by 32-year-old guerrilla leader Fidel Castro, won in Cuba. The new government began a decisive struggle against American influence on the island. Needless to say, the Soviet Union fully supported the Cuban Revolution. However, the Havana authorities seriously feared a US military invasion. In May 1962, Nikita Khrushchev put forward an unexpected idea - to place Soviet nuclear missiles on the island. He jokingly explained this step by saying that the imperialists “need to put a hedgehog in their pants.” After some deliberation, Cuba agreed to the Soviet proposal, and in the summer of 1962, 42 nuclear-tipped missiles and bombers capable of carrying nuclear bombs were sent to the island. The transfer of missiles was carried out in the strictest secrecy, but already in September the US leadership suspected something was wrong. On September 4, President John Kennedy said that the United States would under no circumstances tolerate Soviet nuclear missiles 150 km from its coast. In response, Khrushchev assured Kennedy that there were and would not be any Soviet missiles or nuclear weapons in Cuba.

On October 14, an American reconnaissance aircraft photographed missile launch sites from the air. In an atmosphere of strict secrecy, the US leadership began to discuss retaliatory measures. On October 22, President Kennedy addressed the American people on radio and television. He reported that Soviet missiles had been discovered in Cuba and demanded that the USSR immediately remove them. Kennedy announced that the United States was beginning a naval blockade of Cuba. On October 24, at the request of the USSR, the UN Security Council urgently met. The Soviet Union continued to stubbornly deny the presence of nuclear missiles in Cuba. The situation in the Caribbean Sea became increasingly tense. Two dozen Soviet ships were heading towards Cuba. The American ships were ordered to stop them, if necessary by fire. True, it didn’t come to sea battles. Khrushchev ordered several Soviet ships to stop at the blockade line.

On October 23, an exchange of official letters began between Moscow and Washington. In his first messages, N. Khrushchev indignantly called the actions of the United States “pure banditry” and “the madness of degenerate imperialism.”

Within days, it became clear that the United States was determined to remove the missiles at any cost. On October 26, Khrushchev sent a more conciliatory message to Kennedy. He recognized that Cuba had powerful Soviet weapons. At the same time, Nikita Sergeevich convinced the president that the USSR was not going to attack America. As he put it, “Only crazy people can do this or suicides who want to die themselves and destroy the whole world before that.” Khrushchev offered John Kennedy a commitment not to attack Cuba; then the Soviet Union will be able to remove its weapons from the island. The President of the United States responded that the United States was willing to make a gentleman's commitment not to invade Cuba if the USSR withdrew its offensive weapons. Thus, the first steps towards peace were taken.

But on October 27, the “Black Saturday” of the Cuban crisis came, when only a miracle did not break out a new world war. In those days, squadrons of American aircraft flew over Cuba twice a day for the purpose of intimidation. And on October 27, Soviet troops in Cuba shot down one of the US reconnaissance aircraft with an anti-aircraft missile. Its pilot, Anderson, was killed. The situation escalated to the limit, the US President decided two days later to begin bombing Soviet missile bases and a military attack on the island.

However, on Sunday, October 28, the Soviet leadership decided to accept the American conditions. The decision to remove the missiles from Cuba was made without the consent of the Cuban leadership. Perhaps this was done deliberately, since Fidel Castro categorically objected to the removal of the missiles.

International tensions began to subside quickly after October 28. The Soviet Union removed its missiles and bombers from Cuba. On November 20, the United States lifted the naval blockade of the island. The Cuban (or Caribbean) crisis ended peacefully.

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War began with an incident in the Gulf of Tonkin, during which DRV coast guard ships fired on American destroyers providing fire support to South Vietnamese government forces in their fight against guerrillas. After this, everything secret became clear and the conflict developed according to the already familiar pattern. One of the superpowers entered the war openly, and the second did everything in its power to make the war “not boring.” The war that the United States thought would be a cakewalk turned out to be America's nightmare. Anti-war demonstrations rocked the country. Young people rebelled against the senseless slaughter. In 1975, the United States thought it best to announce that it had “completed its mission” and begin evacuating its military contingent. This war greatly shocked the entire American society and led to major reforms. The post-war crisis lasted more than 10 years. It’s hard to say how it would have ended if the Afghan crisis had not come along.

Afghan war.

In April 1978, a coup took place in Afghanistan, later called the April Revolution. Afghan communists came to power - the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). The government was headed by writer Noor Mohammed Taraki. However, within a few months, a sharp struggle broke out within the ruling party. In August 1979, a confrontation broke out between the two leaders of the party - Taraki and Amin. On September 16, Taraki was removed from his post, expelled from the party and taken into custody. He soon died - according to the official report, “from anxiety.” These events caused discontent in Moscow, although outwardly everything remained as before. The mass “cleansings” and executions that began in Afghanistan among the party were condemned. And since they reminded the Soviet leaders of the Chinese “cultural revolution,” fears arose that Amin might break with the USSR and move closer to China. Amin repeatedly asked for the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan to strengthen revolutionary power. Finally, on December 12, 1979, the Soviet leadership decided to fulfill his request, but at the same time…………………………………. remove Amin himself. Soviet troops were sent into Afghanistan, Amin was killed by a grenade explosion during the storming of the presidential palace. Now Soviet newspapers called him a “CIA agent” and wrote about the “bloody clique of Amin and his minions.”

In the West, the entry of Soviet troops into Afghanistan caused violent protests. The Cold War flared up with renewed vigor. On January 14, 1980, the UN General Assembly demanded the withdrawal of “foreign troops” from Afghanistan. 104 states voted for this decision.

Meanwhile, in Afghanistan itself, armed resistance to Soviet troops began to intensify. It was, of course, not Amin’s supporters who fought against them, but opponents of the revolutionary government in general. At first, the Soviet press claimed that there were no battles in Afghanistan, that peace and tranquility reigned there. However, the war did not subside, and when this became clear, the USSR admitted that “bandits were rampaging” in the republic. They were called “dushmans,” that is, enemies. Secretly, through Pakistan, they were supported by the United States, helping with weapons and money. The United States knew well what war against an armed people was. The experience of the Vietnam War was used 100%, with only one small difference, the roles changed. Now the USSR was at war with an underdeveloped country, and the United States helped it feel what a difficult thing it was. The rebels controlled large parts of Afghanistan. They were all united by the slogan jihad- Islamic holy war. They called themselves “Mujahideen” - fighters for the faith. Otherwise, the rebel groups' programs varied widely.

The war in Afghanistan has not stopped for more than nine years... More than a million Afghans died during the fighting. Soviet troops, according to official data, lost 14,453 people killed.

In June 1987, the first, so far symbolic, steps towards establishing peace were taken. The new Kabul government offered “national reconciliation” to the rebels. In April 1988, the Soviet Union signed an agreement in Geneva on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. On May 15, the troops began to leave. Nine months later, on February 15, 1989, the last Soviet soldier left Afghanistan. For the Soviet Union, the Afghan war ended on this day.

Détente and the end of the Cold War

A slight detente in the confrontation occurred in the 70s. Its crowning achievement was the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe. The participating countries deliberated for two years, and in 1975 in Helsinki, these countries signed the Final Act of the meeting. On the USSR side, it was sealed by Leonid Brezhnev. This document legitimized the post-war division of Europe, which is what the USSR sought. In exchange for this Western concession, the Soviet Union pledged to respect human rights.

Shortly before this, in July 1975, the famous Soviet-American joint flight on the Soyuz and Apollo spacecraft took place. The USSR stopped jamming Western radio broadcasts. It seemed that the era of the Cold War was forever a thing of the past. However, in December 1979, Soviet troops entered Afghanistan - another period of the Cold War began. Relations between the West and the East reached a freezing point when, by decision of the Soviet leadership, a South Korean plane with civilian passengers on board was shot down, which ended up in Soviet airspace. After this event, US President Ronald Reagan called the USSR “an evil empire and the center of evil.” It was only by 1987 that relations between East and West began to gradually improve again.

In 1988-89, with the beginning of perestroika, dramatic changes occurred in Soviet politics. In November 1989, the Berlin Wall came down. On July 1, 1991, the Warsaw Pact was dissolved. The socialist camp collapsed. In a number of countries - its former members - democratic revolutions took place, which were not only not condemned, but were supported by the USSR. The Soviet Union also refused to expand its influence in third world countries. Such a sharp turn in Soviet foreign policy in the West is associated with the name of USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev.

Afterword - goodbye bipolar world

The dismantling of the Berlin Wall is considered the last milestone of the Cold War. That is, we can talk about its results. But this is perhaps the most difficult thing. Probably, history will sum up the results of the Cold War; its true results will be visible in decades. Now we are not objective. On the one hand, there are many people who believe that the Cold War has not ended, but has moved on to the next phase; on the other hand, many are inclined to view its results as the beginning of a new confrontation. What's wrong with the Cold War? First of all, probably, brinksmanship. The parties, of course, did not fight, but they prepared for it so thoroughly that it seemed that it could start at any moment. All events and phenomena in the world were considered as good and bad, what was beneficial to one of the parties (in this they differed little from each other) was good, everything else was bad. Entire generations of people grew up with a deformed psyche, which was expressed in an inadequate perception of the world around them.

But this war also brought with it many positive results. Well, firstly, because it was not hot, i.e. over a fairly long period, despite very strong contradictions, the parties were able to sort things out without resorting to force of arms; secondly, for the first time it forced the opposing sides to negotiate and introduce certain rules of the game into the confrontation itself (a whole system of treaties to limit the arms race is proof of this); The arms race, as a phenomenon, had an unconditional minus sign. It took away enormous material resources, but like any phenomenon it also had a downside. In this case, we can talk about the “golden age” of natural sciences, without the rapid development of which no arms race would have been possible to even think about.

And finally, she emphasized that the main component that determined the victory of one of the parties was universal human values, which neither the fantastic development of technology nor sophisticated ideological influence could outweigh.

Literature:

1. Encyclopedia for children. T.5, part 3. Moscow “Avanta+”. 1995.

2. International economic relations. "News". Moscow. 1991.

3. N.N.Yakovlev. “CIA against the USSR.” "Young guard". Moscow.1983.

4. I.N.Artsibasov. "International law". Moscow. 1989.

5. Stephen Ambrose. “Eisenhower - soldier and president.” Book LTD.” 1993.

6. Winston Churchill. “The Second World War”. T3. "Military Publishing House". 1991.

After World War II, the world entered a new period of political development called the Cold War. This period is characterized, first of all, by an unprecedented arms race. Almost the best scientific forces of the states worked in the interests of military production. All major scientific achievements found their application in the military field.

Prices for military products began to rise even more rapidly than before World War II. For example, if during the war a fighter plane cost 200 thousand marks, then in the mid-50s its price rose to two million marks, and in the mid-60s it was estimated at five million marks. The price of a medium tank from World War II was 400 thousand marks, in the mid-50s it was already one million marks, and in the mid-60s it was 1 million 100 thousand marks. The B-52 strategic bomber cost $8 million, the Forrestal-class aircraft carrier cost $200 billion.

The price of modern ammunition has also become enormous. Thus, just one shell of the Grad multiple launch rocket system costs from 600 to 1000 dollars. One missile of the more powerful Smerch MLRS costs several tens of thousands of dollars.

To provide for one soldier participating in hostilities, 6 kg of various goods were required every day in 1914, during the Second World War - 20 kg, during the Vietnam War - 90 kg. In the Afghan war, each soldier already needed 200 kg of various supplies.

During the Second World War, two or three people worked for one belligerent in the rear, but now this requires eight to ten people. This indicates that the military-technical equipment of the armed forces as a whole and of each soldier individually is increasing enormously.

The total cost of weapons and equipment for one American division during World War II was 19.5 million dollars; in the 60s it increased to 69.5 million. Thus, over 20 years, the cost of equipping the division has more than tripled. Therefore, already in the 60s, only two states were capable of conducting an arms race on equal terms - the USSR and the USA.

Gun costs today

Currently, on the world arms market, a thousand machine gun cartridges cost $30, one live grenade costs $8, and an artillery round costs $130. One Smerch MLRS missile – $2,000, aerial volumetric explosion bomb – $3,000. The cost of a modern Kalashnikov assault rifle is $59. After the last modernization in 2006, this machine gun (A-103) began to cost $386.22.

Sometimes it is possible to reduce the price due to successful technical improvements. Thus, the cost of a domestic radar of the Daryal type is 20 billion rubles, and new stations of high factory readiness are 3 billion rubles. This was achieved by manufacturing the station in container form. However, this is rather an exception and does not reflect the general trend.

The realities of modern warfare, in which many types of troops and very complex military equipment are used, require numerous exercises, and are very costly. One shot from a pistol costs 16 rubles, from a machine gun - about 30 rubles, from a tank gun - 32 thousand rubles, the launch of a guided anti-tank missile - 160 thousand, one anti-aircraft missile of the S-300 complex - more than 30 million. To this must be added the costs of fuel, communication resource consumption, food and all types of support and maintenance of personnel and equipment.

In order for military personnel to own weapons, it is necessary to go to the firing range twice a week and fire at least 30 rounds of ammunition, which was the norm in the Soviet army. If at present these standards are met by only one fifth of the 1.2 million army, 22 billion rubles per year will need to be allocated for ammunition alone.

Sea trips are much more expensive. In January 2007, an aircraft-carrying group of ships of the Russian fleet led by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov sailed to the Mediterranean. It was carried out for the first time with live firing and cost about one billion rubles. Such a campaign by an American aircraft carrier group is estimated at one million dollars per day.

An hour of training flight of a MiG-29 combat fighter costs 3 thousand dollars. The trip of a nuclear submarine costs 100 thousand dollars per day. The cost of a modern T-90 tank is 30 million rubles, a fighter is 35 million dollars.

A strategic bomber costs $400 million, the latest Russian Bulava missile costs $50 million, a Kursk-class nuclear submarine costs $2 billion, and a nuclear aircraft carrier costs $5...6 billion. These are astronomical amounts.

A distinctive feature of modern weapons, military equipment and ammunition is that they require disposal, which requires significant costs. Thus, the dismantling of the Kursk nuclear submarine cost the state 228 million rubles and another 58 million were allocated for related expenses.

US spending on the war in Iraq amounted to $5.6 billion monthly or $186 million per day. This exceeds the cost of the Vietnam War, when a month of fighting cost the Americans $5.1 billion; the entire Vietnam campaign cost the US treasury $600 billion. For the first two years of the Iraq campaign, the US Congress approved spending of $294.4 billion and an additional $45.3 billion.

In addition, the UK spent six billion dollars for the same purposes until March 2005. This would be enough to pay 3.9 million teachers, or fully fund the World Hunger Program for nine years, or fund the World AIDS Program for 22 years.

The war against Iraq became an armed confrontation with the most extensive use of precision weapons. In just 40 days of the Gulf War in 1991, 282 Tomahawk precision cruise missiles were used. Launching one such rocket costs a million dollars.

The most important feature of wars and armed conflicts of the late 20th century was the use of space assets in solving problems of military confrontation, and they are assigned a leading role in solving problems of combat support for troops. Thus, during military operations in the Persian Gulf in 1991, coalition forces deployed an orbital group of 86 spacecraft (29 reconnaissance, two missile attack warning, 36 navigation, 17 communications and two weather support). The most significant role was played by space reconnaissance assets. This was actually the first “space” war in human history.

In the campaign against Yugoslavia in 1999, NATO troops already used about 120 satellites for various purposes, including 36 communications, 35 reconnaissance, 27 navigation and 19 meteorological satellites, which was almost twice the scale of their use during the Gulf War. This sharply increased the costs of war due to the fact that space technology, due to the colossal cost of manufacturing technologies, costs a lot of money. Suffice it to say that 13 design bureaus and research institutes and 35 factories took part in the creation of the first domestic ballistic missile.

According to international organizations, in 1998, global military spending reached $745 billion—an average of $125 per person and 2.6 percent of global GNP. At the same time, the production volume of the Russian military-industrial complex amounted to only 10 percent of the production volume in 1991. Russia's military budget is less than 5.5 percent of the US military budget.

Related information.

OGE section: 3.1.18. Foreign policy of the USSR in 1945-1980s. Cold War. "Discharge"
Unified State Examination code: 3.2.11. Cold War. Military-political alliances in the post-war system of international relations. Formation of the world socialist system

Cold War- a period in the development of international relations and foreign policy of the USSR. The essence of the Cold War was the confrontation between the countries of the capitalist and socialist systems.

The formal beginning of the process was the speech of former British Prime Minister W. Churchill in Fulton (USA) on March 5, 1946, in which he called on Western countries to fight the “expansion of totalitarian communism.”

CAUSES OF THE COLD WAR

Political:

• Fear of further spread of influence of the USSR and the USA.
• The presence throughout the world of supporters of two social systems (socialism and capitalism).
• The need to unite supporters in the face of a threat from the opposite camp.

Economic:

• The struggle for resources, markets for products.
• Weakening the economic power of the enemy during a military-political confrontation.

Military reasons:

• Fear of the enemy's military power.
• Providing advantages in the event of the outbreak of the third world war.

Ideological:

• Prevent the population of enemy countries from becoming acquainted with the attractive aspects of life in an alien society.
• Total struggle between communist and liberal-bourgeois ideologies.

STAGE I. 1946-1953
CONFRONTATION OF TWO MILITARY-POLITICAL BLOCKS ON THE TERRITORY OF EUROPE

After the war, the Soviet Union directed all its efforts to establish pro-Soviet regimes in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe. American policy towards the USSR took a course towards limiting the spread of communist ideology.

The doctrine of US President G. Truman assumed American intervention policy into the political, military and economic affairs of the Balkans and other countries. On May 22, 1947, the Truman Doctrine came into force. An integral part of the new US foreign policy was a program for the economic revival of war-torn Europe - Marshall Plan.

After the communists came to power in the countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe, transformations were carried out along the lines of those carried out earlier in the USSR. Soviet leaders sought to consolidate the bloc of socialist countries and form a unified socialist system.

April 16, 1948 The Organization for European Economic Cooperation (OEEC) was created.

1948 The USSR concluded treaties of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Finland.

1949 Germany split into the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic.

April 4, 1949 The North Atlantic Treaty is signed. Block organized NATO- a military-political union of capitalist countries - with the goal of protecting Europe from Soviet influence. 12 countries have become NATO members: the USA, Canada, Iceland, Great Britain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Norway, Denmark, Italy and Portugal.

1949 The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance was created ( Comecon) for a joint solution to economic problems in connection with the division of Europe. Initially it included: Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, the USSR, Czechoslovakia, then all the countries of the socialist camp, except Yugoslavia.

1955 A military-political union of socialist countries was created - Organization Warsaw Pact(OVD), the OVD included Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR, Czechoslovakia.

ISTAGE I. 1953-1962
KHRUSHCHEV'S THAW,
RETREATING THE THREAT OF WORLD WAR

1956 The anti-communist uprising took place in Hungary (Budapest Autumn), and the Suez Crisis began.

1957 The USSR tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching US territory. Since 1959, mass production of these missiles began in the Soviet Union.

1959. N. S. Khrushchev visited the USA. The first visit of a Soviet leader to the United States (September 15 - 27, 1959). Khrushchev visited Washington and Camp David (on an official visit), as well as New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Nikita Khrushchev met with US President D. D. Eisenhower and Vice President R. M. Nixon.

1961-1962 The scandal with the American spy plane led to a new aggravation of relations between the USSR and the USA, the peak of which was the Berlin crisis (1961) and the Cuban missile crisis (1962). The threat of a third world war looms over the world, which could lead to a nuclear disaster.

Suez crisis. Caused by the actual nationalization of the Suez Canal by Egypt in 1956. In response to nationalization, a triple Anglo-French-Israeli aggression against Egypt began. The Soviet Union provided military-technical assistance to Egypt, and when the situation finally escalated, it issued a statement that the USSR government would not interfere with the arrival of Soviet volunteers in Egypt. After this, the allies of aggression ceased hostilities and withdrew their troops. To be fair, the US also opposed the triple military intervention because the allies did not consult Washington when carrying out the attack.

Berlin crisis. Caused by disputes between the USSR and Western countries about the status of West Berlin. The result of the crisis was the construction of the Berlin Wall, which divided the city into two parts and for many years was a symbol of the Iron Curtain.

Iron curtain- a political cliché introduced into active circulation by W. Churchill in his Fulton speech. It designated an informational, political and border barrier isolating the USSR and other socialist countries from the capitalist countries of the West.

Caribbean crisis- a historical term defining the extremely tense political, diplomatic and military confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States in October 1962, which was caused by the US deployment of nuclear weapons in Turkey in 1961 and the subsequent secret transfer of military units and units of the Armed Forces to Cuba USSR, equipment and weapons, including nuclear weapons. The crisis could lead to a global nuclear disaster. As a result, a peaceful settlement of the problem was achieved. The crisis became a turning point for the reorientation of the foreign policy of the great powers towards easing international tension.

STAGE III. 1962-1979
DELEATING INTERNATIONAL TENSIONS.

1968 Attempts to carry out democratic reforms in Czechoslovakia (Prague Spring) caused military intervention by the USSR and its allies.

1975 A meeting on security and cooperation in Europe was held in Helsinki, and a joint Soviet-American space flight was carried out under the Soyuz-Apollo program.

A number of treaties on the limitation of strategic arms have been signed. In military terms, the basis for detente was the nuclear-missile parity of blocs that had developed by that time.

IV STAGE. 1979-1985
NEW AGGRESSION.

The aggravation arose in connection with the USSR’s attempt to expand its sphere of influence by sending troops into Afghanistan. The geopolitical balance was disrupted and the Soviet Union was accused of a policy of expansion.

Autumn 1983 US President R. Reagan called the USSR an “evil empire.”

1983 The United States deployed medium-range ballistic missiles in European countries, began developing a space missile defense program (the “Star Wars” program),

1983-1986 Soviet nuclear forces and missile warning systems were on high alert.

V STAGE. 1985-1991
M. S. GORBACHEV’S COMING TO POWER. POLICY OF DETENTE.

1988 The withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan began.

1989 Withdrawal of military groups from the GDR, Hungary, Czechoslovakia and Poland. The growth of anti-Soviet sentiments in these countries.

1989-1990 The fall of the communist system in Eastern Europe led to the elimination of the Soviet bloc, and with it the virtual end of the Cold War.

1990 Collapse of Yugoslavia, unification of Germany.

1991 Collapse of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA).

1991 Dissolution of the Warsaw Pact Organization (WTO).

MANIFESTATIONS OF THE COLD WAR:

• Acute confrontation between the socialist and capitalist systems.
• Creation of a system of military (NATO, Warsaw Pact Organization, SEATO, CENTO, ANZUS, ANZYUK) and economic (EEC, CMEA, ASEAN, etc.) alliances.
• Dividing the world into spheres of influence.
• Creation of military bases of the USA and the USSR on the territories of the allied states.
• Arms race, increased military spending.
• International crises (Berlin, Caribbean, etc.).
• The rise of the national liberation movement in colonial and dependent countries and territories, the decolonization of a number of countries in Asia and Africa, the formation of the Third World, the non-aligned movement, neo-colonialism.
• Supporting anti-government forces in enemy countries.
• Boycotts of public events. The 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow were boycotted by the USA, Japan, Germany, Canada, Turkey, South Korea, etc.
• Conducting “psychological warfare”, manifested in the mutual presentation of the enemy in a negative light in the eyes of the citizens of their country.

Military and economic alliances:

SEATO- Southeast Asia Treaty Organization - a military-political bloc of countries in the Asia-Pacific region that existed in 1955-1977. Included: Australia, Great Britain, New Zealand, Pakistan, USA, Thailand, Philippines, France,

SENTO- The Central Treaty Organization is a military-political grouping in the Near and Middle East, created on the initiative of Great Britain, the USA, and Turkey and existed in 1955-1979. Included: Great Britain, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Türkiye.

ANZUS was named after the initial letters of the names of the participating countries (English: Australia, New Zealand, United States) - the military alliance of Australia, New Zealand, and the USA. Created September 1, 1951

ANZYUK named after the initial letters of the names of the three participating countries (English: Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom) - a military-political alliance that existed in 1971-1975. based on a five-party defense agreement. Included: Australia, Great Britain, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore.

European Economic Community (EEC)- a regional integration association of 12 European states that existed from 1957 to 1993. Initially included: France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)- a political, economic and cultural regional intergovernmental organization of 10 countries located in Southeast Asia. ASEAN was created on August 8, 1967. The direct constituent countries were Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines. Currently, 31 states (Russia in 2004) and the European Union have joined the Baltic Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.

13.1 Post-war development of the USSR (1945-1953).

13.2 Reforms N.S. Khrushchev (1953-1964).

13.3 Board of L.I. Brezhnev (1964-1982).

13.4 Perestroika 1985-1991

The post-war development of the USSR was decisively influenced by the Cold War. Participation in it forced us to spend huge amounts of money on the military-industrial complex, diverting it from the production of consumer goods. Against the backdrop of growing needs of the population, the shortage was the cause of growing discontent. The ideological treatment of the Soviet population, primarily the nomenklatura, by American propaganda led to the conviction of the ineffectiveness of the Soviet system and the need to break it.

13.1 Post-war development of the USSR (1945-1953)

The beginning of the Cold War. The end of World War II marked a new geopolitical reality. Two superpowers emerged on the world stage - the USA and the USSR. The United States was able to strengthen itself by becoming a global creditor. In addition, there were no military operations on American soil.

The USSR made a decisive contribution to the defeat of fascism, which ensured the growth of its popularity in the world. If in 1941 the USSR had diplomatic relations with only 26 countries, then in 1945 - with 52. In 1945, communists were part of the governments of 13 bourgeois states, including France and Italy. The Soviet army was a powerful force and was the largest in the world. The political influence of the USSR extended to Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and eastern Germany.

However, the growing influence of the USSR worried the United States, which began against the Soviet Union "cold war"– confrontation between the USA and the USSR in the military-political, economic and ideological spheres.

The Cold War began on March 5, 1946 with the “Fulton speech” of former British Prime Minister W. Churchill. Speaking in Fulton in the presence of US President Henry Truman, W. Churchill announced the threat posed by the USSR.

In 1947, the ideas of W. Churchill were developed in the message of President G. Truman to the US Congress (“Truman Doctrine”). They identified two strategic objectives in relation to the USSR:

The minimum task is to prevent further expansion of the sphere of influence of the USSR and its communist ideology (“the doctrine of containing socialism”);

The maximum task is to do everything to force the USSR to withdraw to its former borders (“the doctrine of rejecting socialism”).

The doctrine defined specific measures to accomplish these tasks (Cold War program):

Providing economic assistance to European countries, making their economies dependent on the United States (“Marshall Plan”);

Creation of military-political alliances led by the United States;

Placement of US bases along Soviet borders;

Support for anti-socialist forces within the Soviet bloc countries.

In 1949, on the initiative of the United States, the military-political bloc NATO (North Atlantic Alliance Organization) was created, which, in addition to the United States, included Canada, England and a number of Western European countries. Plans were being developed for military aggression against the USSR and the atomic bombing of Soviet territory. Only the successful test of the Soviet atomic bomb in 1949 stopped the implementation of these plans.

After Western countries began to pursue a Cold War policy towards the Soviet Union, the USSR began to strengthen and expand cooperation with socialist countries. In 1946-1948. The USSR contributed to the fall of the “popular front” coalition governments and the establishment of communist rule in their place in Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia (in Yugoslavia and Albania, communists came to power back in 1945). In these countries, reforms were carried out according to the Soviet model: nationalization, collectivization, etc.

Moscow's imposition of its political will had a material basis. Even during the famine that engulfed most of Soviet territory in 1946, the USSR supplied the allies with 2.5 million tons of grain. The countries of the “socialist camp” were provided with preferential loans, which amounted to. 3 billion dollars.

In 1947, the Information Bureau of the Communist and Workers' Parties - the Information Bureau - was formed. It existed until 1956 and was designed to coordinate the actions of these parties to adopt joint resolutions. The USSR began to actively promote the communist movement in capitalist countries, contributed to the growth of the national liberation movement, and the collapse of the colonial system.

Relations between the USSR and the countries of the “socialist camp” were not always easy and simple. Thus, in 1948, relations between the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia were severed due to personal contradictions of I.V. Stalin and the leader of the Yugoslav communists Josip Broz Tito.

In 1949, the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA) was created. It became the main channel of material assistance from the USSR to socialist countries. The CMEA included Bulgaria, Hungary, Vietnam, East Germany, Cuba, Mongolia, and Poland. Romania, USSR, Czechoslovakia. In 1949, Albania joined the CMEA, but since the end of 1961 it has not participated in the activities of the organization. Since 1961, Yugoslavia has taken part in the activities of the CMEA on some issues.

The USSR began to pursue an active policy in Asia. Thus, the USSR helped ensure that a socialist revolution took place in China and the People's Republic of China was created - the PRC (1949).

In 1949, the first Berlin crisis broke out, resulting in the division of Germany. In May 1949, the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) was created on the territory of the western occupation zones with its capital in Bonn. As a response, the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was created in October 1949 in the Soviet occupation zone.

The first armed conflict of the Cold War was the Korean War (1950-1953). North Korea was supported in the war by the USSR, which helped with military equipment, and China, which sent in its troops. The United States took the side of South Korea, whose troops launched military operations on the territory of the peninsula. As a result, the war ended with the final division of Korea.

In 1955, the Eastern European part of these countries was united into a military-political union - the Warsaw Treaty Organization (WTO). It included Albania (withdrew in 1968), Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, USSR, Czechoslovakia.

Social and political life. The transition to peaceful life required a reorganization of government. In September 1945, the state of emergency was lifted in the USSR and the State Defense Committee was abolished. In 1946, the Council of People's Commissars was transformed into the Council of Ministers, whose chairman was I.V. Stalin.

Victory in the Great Patriotic War raised hopes for a weakening of the repressive regime and an improvement in life. The generation of Soviet soldiers and officers, who had gone through the harsh school of war, felt relative independence and the importance of initiative, expected the democratization of public life. People were full of optimism, believing that the worst was behind them. Many peasants hoped for the dissolution of collective farms. The intelligentsia dreamed of the possibility of free creativity.

The outbreak of the Cold War led to a tightening of the political regime since 1946. The Stalinist leadership began to “tighten the screws” that had weakened in the previous years. In 1946, a large group of officers and generals were arrested. G.K. fell into disgrace. Zhukov, appointed to command first the Odessa Military District, and then the Ural Military District.

Former Soviet prisoners of war and civilians deported to Germany were subjected to “cleaning”; some of them ended up in camps. There was a fight against nationalist movements in Western Ukraine (“Ukrainian Insurgent Army”) and in the Baltic states (“Forest Brothers”)

In the summer of 1946, an ideological campaign against the creative intelligentsia began. Within its framework, there was persecution of the magazines “Leningrad”, “Zvezda”, representatives of the intelligentsia (A. Akhmatova, M. Zoshchenko, S. Eisenstein, S. Prokofiev, S. Shostakovich, etc.). They were accused of lack of patriotism, currying favor with the West, and lack of ideas in creativity.

In 1948, the fight against "cosmopolitanism"– a worldview that places universal human interests and values ​​above the interests of an individual nation. Contacts with foreigners and marriages with them were prohibited. In 1948-1952. a trial was organized in the case of the Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee.

Entire scientific fields, such as genetics and cybernetics, were declared bourgeois and banned, which slowed down the development of these areas of science in the USSR for decades. It was planned to ban quantum theory and the theory of relativity, but the need to have an atomic bomb saved physics.

At the end of Stalin's life (he turned 70 in 1949), the struggle for power between his comrades intensified. One of the groups (L.P. Beria, G.M. Malenkov, N.S. Khrushchev) managed to achieve organization in 1949-1952. “Leningrad affair”, as a result of which the very influential “Leningrad group” was destroyed. During it, current or former leaders of Leningrad were repressed, including Chairman of the USSR State Planning Committee N.A. Voznesensky (one of Stalin’s possible successors), Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the RSFSR M.I. Rodionova and others.

In 1952-1953 fabricated “case of doctors” accused of plotting to assassinate Stalin and other Soviet leaders.

Despite the high-profile processes of the post-war period, their scale was incommensurate with the repressions of 1937-1938. There was no real protest against the existing regime; it continued to enjoy mass support. In October 1952, the 19th Congress of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks) took place, renaming the party the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU).

Socio-economic development. During the war years, a third of the national wealth of the USSR was lost. The western part of the country lay in ruins. Therefore, the main task in the field of economics in the first post-war years was the restoration of the national economy destroyed by the war and the transition to peaceful construction.

In this case, I had to rely only on my own strength. Reparations from defeated Germany amounted to only 4.3 billion dollars. He refused American assistance to the USSR under the Marshall Plan, because it implied the loss of part of sovereignty. The main sources of development were the redistribution of funds from the agricultural sector to industry, government loans, free labor of prisoners of war and prisoners. The unprecedented spiritual uplift of the people was also used.

Priority continued to be given to the development of heavy industry. Was carried out in a short time conversion industry - transfer to the production of peaceful products. During the fourth five-year plan (1946-1950), over 6.2 thousand industrial enterprises were restored and rebuilt. By 1947, industry had reached its pre-war level, and in 1950 it exceeded it by more than 70%.

In 1949, an atomic weapon was tested, and in 1953, a hydrogen bomb was tested.

In the field of agriculture, the first post-war five-year plan was not fulfilled. Considering the village as a source for industry, the country's leadership increased non-economic coercion of the collective farm peasantry. Social benefits available in the industrial sphere did not apply to him; peasants could not leave the village without the sanction of the authorities. The collective farm system was strengthened, labor discipline became stricter, and exorbitant taxes grew.

The situation in agriculture was complicated by the fact that in 1946, Ukraine, the Lower Volga region, the North Caucasus, and the central black earth regions were gripped by severe drought. The ensuing famine, according to some estimates, led to the death of 770 thousand people.

At the turn of the 1940-1950s. To better use technology and improve the management of agriculture, small collective farms were consolidated. During 1950-1953 their number decreased from 255 to 94 thousand. Peasants settled on central estates, and small villages were liquidated.

As the factories were restored, new equipment was sent to the village, and the village was electrified. Despite the measures taken, the situation in agriculture remained difficult.

In 1947, the card system for food and industrial goods was abolished and a monetary reform was carried out in the form of denomination, which consisted of exchanging old money for new ones, mainly in a ratio of 10:1.

Reductions in prices for consumer goods carried out for propaganda purposes also placed an additional burden on the peasantry, since they were carried out mainly by reducing purchase prices for agricultural products.

13.2 Reforms N.S. Khrushchev (1953-1964)

Changes in the country's top leadership. After the death of I.V. Stalin (March 5, 1953) a short period of “collective leadership” began. G.M. became the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR. Malenkov. L.P. was appointed his first deputy. Beria, who headed the Ministry of Internal Affairs, merged with the Ministry of State Security. N.S. Khrushchev first served as Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, but in September 1953 he was elected to the post of First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. A struggle for power developed between them. Khrushchev had the least chance of winning, but it was he who eventually became the leader of the country. What helped him win the fight was that he headed the party, the main element of the political system.

In June 1953 L.P. Beria was accused of “anti-party activities” and arrested. The capture group was led by Deputy Minister of Defense G.K. Zhukov. Already in December 1953, Beria was shot. In 1955 G.M. Malenkov was removed from his post as Chairman of the Council of Ministers.

In the summer of 1957, Malenkov, Molotov and Kaganovich made an attempt to remove Khrushchev from the post of First Secretary of the Central Committee. With the help of G.K. Zhukov, Khrushchev retained power, and Malenkov, Molotov and Kaganovich were accused of creating an anti-party group and removed from their posts. Within a few months, Khrushchev “thanked” Zhukov by removing him from the leadership of the army. In 1958, Khrushchev also headed the Council of Ministers of the USSR, becoming the sole leader.

"Thaw". 1953-1964 got the name "thaw" since after the death of Stalin there was a liberalization of the political regime. Khrushchev headed for de-Stalinization– the process of overcoming the cult of personality and eliminating the political regime created in the USSR during the reign of I.V. Stalin. It began to be carried out most actively in 1956, after the 20th Congress of the CPSU.

In 1956, the XX Congress of the CPSU took place, at which N.S. Khrushchev read out a report “On the cult of personality and its consequences.” The report contained information about the mass executions of innocent people and the deportation of peoples in the 1930s and 1940s. The reasons for the mass repressions were associated with the personality cult of I.V. Stalin, with negative traits of his character. The political system and the leadership that was in power and involved in the repressions were beyond criticism.

After the end of the congress with the report of N.S. Party organizations and non-party activists were introduced to Khrushchev. The facts contained in the report caused indignation and a desire to understand the reasons for the connivance of lawlessness on the part of party bodies. Public condemnation of the cult of I.V. Stalin, the exposure of the crimes of the Stalinist regime caused profound changes in public consciousness and destroyed the system of fear. A return to repressive policies after this was no longer possible.

After the congress the process began rehabilitation(restoration of the rights) of repressed citizens and peoples who suffered during Stalin's time. The displaced peoples returned.

There were also negative aspects. After the 20th Congress, the authority of the Communist Party began to decline. The report marked the beginning of a split in the international communist movement.

The “thaw” itself was carried out inconsistently. Khrushchev did not allow great liberties. The CPSU fully retained the levers of ideological control. In 1958, a campaign was launched against B.L. Pasternak in connection with his being awarded the Nobel Prize for his novel “Doctor Zhivago” published in Italy.

In 1961, at the XXII Congress of the CPSU, a new, third Party Program was adopted. Based on the erroneous thesis that socialism had won “completely and completely” in the USSR, the program proclaimed the country’s entry into the period of “full-scale construction of communism.” The program provided for the creation of communism by 1980.

At the XXII Congress of the CPSU, an important provision appeared in the Party Charter, according to which no one could hold an elected position in the party for more than two consecutive terms, and the composition of the governing bodies must be renewed by at least one third. If under Stalin the massive renewal of the managerial stratum took place through repression, under Khrushchev it had to happen through elections.

At the turn of 1950-1960 The “thaw” was winding down, and the personality cult of Khrushchev himself was growing. There was growing dissatisfaction with his policies due to the unsatisfactory results of the reforms being carried out.

Industrial management reforms. In August 1953 G.M. Malenkov came up with a program of economic reforms, the essence of which was the priority development of the light and food industries (group “B”) and agriculture. G.M.'s plans Malenkov was dissatisfied with the leaders of heavy industry. There was an intense struggle for power in the top party leadership, and this was N.S.’s dissatisfaction. Khrushchev decided to use it to weaken the position of his rival. G.M. Malenkov was accused of dangerously underestimating the development of heavy industry, and he was removed.

The main attention was still paid to the production of capital goods - group “A”. By the beginning of the 1960s. the share of group “A” in the total volume of the national economy began to amount to 75%. The production of building materials, mechanical engineering, metalworking, chemistry, petrochemistry, and electric power developed at a particularly rapid pace.

In 1957, ministries were abolished, and 105 economic councils were created in their place. The essence of the reform was the transition from the sectoral to the territorial principle. The decentralization of industrial management significantly strengthened the economic role of the union and autonomous republics, but at the same time it complicated all-union ties, coordination of enterprises located in different regions, and gave rise to a certain disunity.

The organization of economic councils had some effect, but then began to restrain production, since the petty tutelage of local leaders turned out to be worse than the petty tutelage of line ministries. In the early 1960s. the rate of economic growth began to decline steadily.

The worsening economic situation forced Khrushchev to undertake another major management reform. In 1962, all governing bodies were restructured from top to bottom according to the production principle. Party organizations, councils and executive committees were divided into industrial and rural. Division along production lines led to confusion, an increase in the number of officials and a significant increase in administrative costs.

Reforms in agriculture. At the September (1953) plenum of the CPSU Central Committee, important decisions were made on economic stimulation of agriculture. Purchasing prices for agricultural products increased by 2-6 times depending on the type. Taxes on peasants' personal subsidiary plots were reduced. The supply of tractors and agricultural machinery to villages has increased.

In 1954, the development of virgin lands began. About 300 thousand volunteers and a lot of equipment were sent to Kazakhstan and Western Siberia. These resources were separated from the old arable areas of Russia. In the early years, virgin soil produced a good harvest. However, already at the end of the 1950s. Soil erosion began and crop yields fell.

In order to solve the feed problem, the area under corn was increased by reducing cereal crops.

In 1953-1958. the increase in agricultural production amounted to 34% compared to the previous five years. However, since the late 1950s, as N.S. strengthened. Khrushchev in power, there was a turn to the previous administrative methods of managing agriculture. The restriction of personal subsidiary plots began.

In 1958, MTS was reorganized, replacing which repair and technical stations (RTS) appeared. Machine and tractor stations were liquidated, and their equipment had to be purchased by collective farms at a high price and in a short time. This ruined many collective farms.

By the beginning of the 1960s. The food problem has worsened again. The government's decision to stimulate the development of livestock farming by increasing retail prices for meat and butter (1962) caused acute discontent among city residents. Rallies and protest demonstrations took place in a number of regions; the demonstration of workers and employees of Novocherkassk was suppressed by troops. There were casualties.

Fearing a further increase in social tension, the party and state leadership, for the first time in the history of Russia and the USSR, began purchasing grain from the United States, which marked the beginning of the country's growing dependence on food imports. An indicator of the crisis in agriculture was the failure of the tasks of the 7-year plan (1959-1965): the actual growth of agricultural production over the years of the seven-year plan was 15% instead of the planned 70%.

The science. The high level of Soviet science contributed to the emergence of nuclear energy. In 1953, the first hydrogen bomb was tested. In 1954, the first nuclear power plant was launched in the city of Obninsk near Moscow. In 1959, the first nuclear icebreaker “Lenin” appeared. Then the first nuclear submarines were built. The world's first passenger jet aircraft, TU-104, appeared.

In 1957, under the leadership of S.P. Korolev, the first artificial satellite was launched, and on April 12, 1961, the first man on the planet, Yu.A., flew into space. Gagarin.

However, in general, the leadership of the USSR failed to ensure the full implementation of the scientific and technological revolution that covered all developed countries of the world, which in subsequent years led to the country's technical lag in the most promising areas.

Social sphere. In 1956, a law on state pensions was adopted. In accordance with it, the size of pensions for certain categories of citizens increased by 2 or more times. Collective farmers received a state pension only in 1964. Tuition fees in schools and universities were abolished. The scale of housing construction has increased.

Foreign policy. In his foreign policy course N.S. Khrushchev was guided by the principle of peaceful coexistence of capitalist and socialist systems. But it was not always followed. Breakthroughs in relations with the West were followed by crisis situations.

In 1958, the first visit of the head of the Soviet state to the United States took place. In 1963, an agreement was concluded banning nuclear weapons tests in three areas - in the atmosphere, in space, and under water.

In 1961, the second Berlin crisis occurred, which resulted in the division of the city into West Berlin, surrounded by the famous Berlin Wall, and East Berlin, the capital of the GDR.

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 became especially acute, which arose in connection with the deployment of Soviet missiles in Cuba, in close proximity to the United States, and brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

To strengthen its position in the countries of the socialist camp, the Soviet Union used all possible levers - from financial, economic and technical assistance to forceful pressure. In 1955, a military-political union of the socialist countries of Europe (except Yugoslavia) was created - the Warsaw Pact Organization. In 1956, the Soviet Union suppressed an anti-communist uprising in Hungary. At the end of the 1950s. Relations between the USSR and the largest socialist country, China, sharply deteriorated, caused by ideological differences and the divergence of strategic interests of the two countries.

Much attention was paid to the development of relations with the states of the “third world” (developing countries) - India, Indonesia, Burma, Afghanistan, etc. Trying to ensure its influence in these countries, the Soviet Union provided them with assistance in the construction of industrial facilities. During the reign of N.S. Khrushchev, with financial and technical assistance from the USSR, about 6 thousand enterprises were built in different countries of the world.

In 1964, a conspiracy arose against Khrushchev, in which A.N. took an active part. Shelepin, N.V. Podgorny, L.I. Brezhnev, V.E. Semichastny and others. At the October (1964) Plenum of the CPSU Central Committee N.S. Khrushchev was accused of “voluntarism” and “subjectivism”, removed from all posts and sent into retirement.

13.3 Board of L.I. Brezhnev (1964-1982)

After the dismissal of Khrushchev, L.I. became the First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. Brezhnev (since 1966 - General Secretary, since 1977 - simultaneously Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR). The post of Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR was taken by A.N. Kosygin.

Both in character and intellect, Brezhnev did not possess the qualities of a leader of a great power necessary to implement a radical renewal of society. The leading place in governing the country was taken by the unofficial “small” Politburo, which included Minister of Defense D.F. Ustinov, Minister of Foreign Affairs A.A. Gromyko, Secretary of the Central Committee M.A. Suslov, KGB Chairman Yu.V. Andropov, who determined domestic and foreign policy.

The basis of the course was “stability,” which meant the rejection of any attempts at radical renewal of society. Both the government and society are tired of the emergency conditions and constant tension in which the country has lived for the previous half century.

Political development. The characteristic features of the country's political development in the second half of the 1960s - the first half of the 1980s. centralization and bureaucratization of the administrative apparatus began. The adopted resolutions on further democratization of public life remained declarative.

Brezhnev's reign was a “golden time” for the bureaucracy. Under Stalin, she lived under constant fear of arrest; under Khrushchev’s constant reorganizations, she also felt restless. After the death of Stalin and the removal of Khrushchev, the elite wanted a quiet life, confidence in the future, and wanted to protect themselves from personnel changes. Brezhnev was ideally suited to the role of spokesman for the interests of the bureaucrats.

The total number of managers by the end of Brezhnev’s reign was almost 18 million people (one manager for every 6-7 employees). The rapid growth of the bureaucracy was ensured by numerous benefits and privileges. To maintain such a device by the mid-1980s. More than 40 billion rubles, or 10% of the budget, were spent annually.

By the beginning of the 1980s. In the management of the national economy alone, up to 200 thousand various orders, instructions and other by-laws have accumulated, which regulated every step of business executives and fettered their initiative.

In 1977, a new Constitution of the USSR. It noted that a developed socialist society had been built in the USSR. Article 6 officially secured the position of the CPSU as the “core” of the Soviet political system, the “guiding and guiding force” of a society of developed socialism. The most important task was proclaimed to be the formation and strengthening of a new international community - the Soviet people.

The ranks of the CPSU grew rapidly, reaching by the mid-1980s. 19 million people. Real power was concentrated in the apparatus, which reached almost 500 thousand people. Ordinary communists were excluded from real participation in determining party policy.

The clause on personnel turnover was excluded from the Party Charter, and control over the nomenklatura was weakened. Personnel stagnation began. The country's top elite since the 1970s. is beginning to increasingly reproduce itself not through promotions from below, but through the selection and training of personnel in elite schools. These were the Academy of Social Sciences under the CPSU Central Committee, the Higher Party School, etc.

By the end of the 1970s. The country's top leadership has turned into a real gerontocracy. By the end of Brezhnev's reign, the average age of Politburo members reached almost 70 years. Meetings of the Politburo, which made the most important political decisions, often lasted no more than 15-20 minutes. Brezhnev himself, who suffered a serious illness in 1976, never recovered from it, and since the late 1970s. tried to step away from leading the country, but his comrades convinced him to stay. For them, he was the guarantor of maintaining their own power.

The “stagnation” of the era of developed socialism became the heyday of nomenklatura privileges, which included state dachas, special rations, special treatment, etc. However, they could not be converted into personal property and passed on to children. This made me want to change the system.

Such phenomena as nepotism, clanism, and corruption have flourished. Abuse of official position, the desire to place relatives in “grain” positions, in an elite university, etc., are becoming commonplace.

The merging of the party-state apparatus with the shadow economy began. The scale of the latter became increasingly threatening. In the mid-1970s. businessmen in the shadow economy alienated about a seventh of workers' income by the early 1980s. - 18%, by 1985 - 21%, and in 1989 - 25%.

Stagnant phenomena in the life of Soviet society in the 1970s - the first half of the 1980s. also affected the sphere of ideology. Criticism of Stalin was curtailed, and references to the mass repressions of the 1930s and early 1950s were expelled from the pages of newspapers and magazines. (“neo-Stalinism”), persecution of any manifestations of dissent intensified. Real life increasingly diverged from the official ideology.

Since the mid-1960s. a dissident movement was formed in the USSR (translated as “ dissidents" - dissenters, dissenters). Dissidents demanded strict observance of human rights. The authorities used repressive measures against them (arrests, exile, placement in psychiatric hospitals, dismissal from work, expulsion from the party). Academician A.D. became symbols of the human rights and dissident movement. Sakharov (exiled to Gorky) and writer A.I. Solzhenitsyn (deported abroad).

Dissidents organized the publication abroad of books banned in the country and their illegal distribution on the territory of the USSR (“ tamizdat"). The so-called uncensored press arose (“ samizdat"). The activities of dissidents had a great influence on public opinion in the country and played a significant role in shaking the foundations of the Soviet state.

Economic development. The decline in the quality of the managerial layer also affected the economic development of the country.

In 1965, economic reform was carried out under the leadership of A.N. Kosygina. The sectoral management principle was restored in industry, and ministries were again formed instead of economic councils. Enterprises partially switched to self-financing: they retained the profit from the sale of above-plan products. Enterprises could use this profit to develop production or stimulate staff work.

According to the most important socio-economic parameters, the Eighth Five-Year Plan (1966-1970) was the best in the post-war period. The volume of industrial production increased 1.5 times, about 1,900 large enterprises were built (including VAZ, KamAZ, Izhevsk Automobile Plant). However, the reform did not change the fundamentals of the economic mechanism, and many of its measures were curtailed due to resistance from the bureaucracy.

Since the early 1970s. the rate of economic growth began to decline: the growth rate of national income fell from 7.7% in the Eighth Five-Year Plan (1966-1970) to 3.8% in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan (1981-1985), and the growth rate of labor productivity decreased.

The main problem of the Soviet economy of this period was that it was almost not connected with scientific and technological progress. Industry continued to maintain its extensive character. The fuel, energy and military-industrial complexes remained the core of the economy. Enterprises of the military-industrial complex accounted for about 2/3 of the output of Soviet mechanical engineering.

Oil and gas production in Western Siberia developed at an accelerated pace. In 1980, the USSR fuel and energy complex accounted for 10% of world oil and gas production. The development of the regions of Siberia and the Far East necessitated the construction of the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM), the construction of which began in 1974.

As a result, the emphasis was placed on purchasing industrial equipment, consumer goods and grain abroad in exchange for exports of energy resources (primarily oil).

In agriculture, emphasis was also placed on economic levers - increasing procurement prices, increasing capital investments, transferring collective farmers to guaranteed wages and pensions. The production of agricultural machinery increased and its quality improved. The electrification of agriculture was completed, chemicalization and land reclamation were carried out. Rural construction was carried out at a high pace, roads were built in the countryside, and gasification was carried out. Agricultural science developed, agriculture became saturated with specialists.

The Non-Black Earth Development Programs (1974) and the Food Program (1982) were large-scale.

The scourge of the national economy remained the diversion of up to 20% of the country’s total active population to “patronage assistance” to the village during the harvest season and huge, up to 30-40%, crop losses. Agriculture was increasingly unable to cope with the country's food supply needs. Since the 1970s The shortages increasingly included meat, sausages, and, in some areas, cheeses and dairy products.

Development of education. Since 1966, the transition of secondary schools to new curricula and programs began in the country. They were characterized by: continuity in the study of material from the 1st to the 10th grade, the beginning of systematic teaching of systems of science (subject teaching) from the 4th grade. High-quality textbooks, manuals and methodological guides for teachers were prepared. As a result, since the mid-1960s. The transition to universal compulsory eight-year education was completed, and then within 10 years (by the mid-1970s) to universal secondary education.

Development of science. The most striking evidence of the flourishing of Soviet science is the achievements in the field of space exploration. The USSR continued to study the Moon using spacecraft. In 1965, the far side of the Moon was photographed. An outstanding achievement was the delivery of lunar soil to Earth and its further study. Soviet spacecraft reached the surface of the planet Venus and transmitted valuable information about its atmosphere to Earth. Outstanding discoveries were made in the field of plasma and quantum physics.

Social politics. In social policy, the emphasis was on increasing the well-being of the population. Real income per capita for 1965-1975. grew by 46%, in 1976-1980. - by another 18%, in 1981-1985 - by 10%. Accordingly, the level of needs that Soviet industry was unable to satisfy increased. The shortage of goods was made up for by imports, on which “petrodollars” were spent. But even in this case, the increased demands were not fully covered.

An important social achievement was the transfer of workers and employees to a five-day work week with two days off and paid vacation. Soviet people enjoyed free education and medical care, and the state incurred large expenses for maintaining the housing stock.

The main achievement during this period was large-scale housing construction. Throughout the 1970s. More than 100 million square meters were commissioned in the country annually. m of housing, which made it possible to improve the living conditions of more than 107 million people. By the beginning of the 80s. 80% of families had separate apartments, and they were given free of charge.

Foreign policy . From the late 1960s to the late 1970s. confrontation gave way to a “détente” of international tension. The USSR signed treaties: on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons (1968); the SALT I treaty with the United States (1972) on the limitation of missile defense; SALT II Treaty (1979) on the limitation of intermediate-range missiles.

The culmination of “détente” was the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (1975) in Helsinki, which was attended by 33 European countries, the USA and Canada. The states pledged to observe the principles of sovereign equality, not to interfere in each other's internal affairs, respect human rights, and resolve disputes peacefully.

In the early 1970s. The United States recognized the existence of a military-strategic parity(equality) with the Soviet Union.

In relations with socialist countries, the USSR continued the “senior partner” policy. In 1968, the uprising in Czechoslovakia (“Prague Spring”) was suppressed, in which they wanted to build “socialism with a human face.” Troops were sent to Czechoslovakia.

In the spring of 1969, an armed clash occurred between Chinese troops in the area of ​​​​Damansky Island on the river. Ussuri.

In 1979, Soviet troops were sent to Afghanistan, and the Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989) began. After the deployment of troops to Afghanistan, relations with Western countries deteriorated sharply. The US Senate refused to ratify the SALT II treaty signed with the USSR.

The worsening international situation and the decline in the authority of the USSR on the world stage were closely related to the growing general crisis in the administrative-command system.

Board of Yu.V. Andropov and K.U. Chernenko. First half of the 1980s marked by frequent changes in the country's top leadership (“hearse race”). Brezhnev died in November 1982. 68-year-old Yu.V. became the new leader of the country. Andropov (1982-1984), who managed to distinguish himself by fighting corruption and strengthening labor discipline. After his death (February 1984), the seriously ill 72-year-old K.U. came to power. Chernenko (died March 1985). He didn't remember anything noticeable. Then the youngest, 54-year-old Politburo member M.S. was elected General Secretary of the Central Committee. Gorbachev.

13.4 Perestroika 1985-1991

In March 1985, 54-year-old M.S. became General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee. Gorbachev. The election of a relatively young, energetic leader reflected the desire of society and the political elite for long-overdue changes. By that time, the technological lag of the USSR from the USA, Western Europe, and Japan had become obvious. The growth rate of the Soviet economy fell to almost 3% per year by 1985. Economic stagnation was combined with large military expenditures. The economy was unable to satisfy the significantly increased level of demands of the population.

Gorbachev's reign is called "perestroika" because in 1985-1991. There was a large-scale reform that covered all spheres of life in Soviet society. Redevelopment is usually divided into three stages.

First stage(1985-1986) was characterized by attempts at major administrative changes that did not affect the foundations of the system and were aimed at improving the socialist system.

In April 1985, a policy was proclaimed to “accelerate” socio-economic development. Acceleration was planned to be achieved through scientific and technological progress, the re-equipment of mechanical engineering, and the activation of the human factor. The fight against corruption and violations of industrial discipline has unfolded. A campaign to combat “unearned” income began, and state acceptance– product quality control.

Immediately after the adoption of the acceleration course, a serious rejuvenation of personnel in the highest echelon of power began. By the beginning of 1987, 70% of the members of the Politburo, 60% of the secretaries of regional party organizations, and 40% of the members of the CPSU Central Committee had been replaced.

The socio-political situation in the country has changed. Changes in this area began with the implementation of the policy of openness. Censorship was lifted. This caused a widespread surge in social activity.

At the same time, a number of problems arose, the consequences of which affected the fate of perestroika. In 1985, world oil prices fell sharply. Multi-billion-dollar revenues from its exports have declined, making it impossible to purchase abroad the country's missing food products, light industrial products and high-tech equipment.

Started in 1985 anti-alcohol campaign– a policy aimed at reducing the production, consumption and sale of alcoholic beverages. It caused serious damage to the financial system (according to the most minimal estimates, the budget received a shortfall of 67 billion rubles) and led to a catastrophic increase in substance abuse and moonshine. There were many poisonings. There was a shortage of sugar. Vineyards were cut down. The shadow economy has grown, and population discontent has increased.

In April 1986, an accident occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Elimination of the consequences of this accident cost 14 billion rubles in 1986 alone, and required costs later.

In the foreign policy of the USSR, a new course was proclaimed, called "new political thinking". The central place in it was given to the priority of universal human values ​​over class values ​​and the rejection of the principle of proletarian internationalism. The need for broad contacts between the USSR and all countries of the world, regardless of their social system, was emphasized.

Second phase(1987-1988) perestroika was characterized by attempts at reform in the spirit of democratic socialism. Large-scale reforms began in all spheres of life of Soviet society.

In 1987, the “Law on State Enterprise” was adopted. Enterprises were transferred to self-sufficiency and self-supporting, received the right to foreign economic activity and the creation of joint ventures.

In 1988, the “Law on Cooperation” and the “Law on Individual Labor Activity” were adopted. The new laws opened up the possibility for private activity in more than 30 types of production of goods and services.

In 1988, rural residents received the right to lease land for 50 years and have full control over the products produced. But these measures did not lead to a revival of the entrepreneurial spirit among the peasants: by the summer of 1991, tenant farms accounted for only 2% of cultivated land and 3% of livestock. The lack of equipment among the peasants and the desire of local authorities to suppress peasant initiative also had an impact.

After some successes associated with the enthusiasm for renewal, the economic recession began. Gorbachev announced that bureaucracy was a hindrance and began reforming the political system. It was approved in the summer of 1988 at the XIX All-Union Party Conference.

The essence of the political reform was a clear division of responsibilities between party bodies and the Soviets, and the transfer of power from the CPSU to the Soviets. The highest authority was proclaimed the Congress of People's Deputies of the USSR, which elected the permanent Supreme Council.

In the second half of the 1980s. Interethnic contradictions intensified, separatist sentiments grew. Local elites sought independence in order to manage economic resources and financial flows themselves. Against the background of the deteriorating economic situation, protest arose in the form of national movements. In 1988, the Popular Fronts of Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia were created, the goal of which was the separation of the Baltic republics from the USSR. Bloody clashes took place between Armenia and Azerbaijan, in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.

Third stage perestroika (1989-1991) is characterized by the fact that during this period there was a sharp destabilization of the situation in the country.

The economic situation continued to deteriorate. Since 1988, agricultural production has decreased noticeably, industrial production growth in 1989 reached zero and decreased by 10% in the first half of 1991. Budget deficit in 1988-1989. reached 100 billion rubles. To meet demand, the government introduced a card system and increased imports on a credit basis. By the end of 1991, the USSR's external debt increased to almost 100 billion dollars.

Difficulties in the economy are developing into a full-scale crisis. Empty store shelves become a symbol of the turn of the 1980s and 1990s. Perestroika euphoria in society is replaced by disappointment, uncertainty about the future and mass anti-communist sentiments. Since 1990, the main idea is no longer “improving socialism”, but building democracy and a market economy of the capitalist type. Several programs for the transition to a market economy were developed. One of these was the utopian program “500 days”, proposed by G.A. Yavlinsky.

Society was increasingly overwhelmed by the effect of overthrow. Glasnost, from an instrument of criticism and “improvement” of the socialist system, began to turn into an instrument of its destruction.

The elections of people's deputies, held in the spring of 1989 on an alternative basis, showed a negative attitude towards candidates supported by the CPSU.

At the First Congress of People's Deputies (May-June 1989), M.S. was elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Gorbachev. At the congress, a group of radical deputies formed the political opposition to the CPSU called the Interregional Deputy Group (MDG). Among the co-chairs of this group were A.D. Sakharov, B.N. Yeltsin, G.Kh. Popov et al.

At the III Congress of People's Deputies (March 1990), Article 6 of the Constitution, which secured the monopoly position of the CPSU in society, was abolished. This opened up the possibility for the formation of a legal multi-party system in the USSR. At the same congress M.S. Gorbachev was elected the first president of the USSR.

In the spring of 1990, the union republics held elections to their own congresses of people's deputies. In the RSFSR, the opposition won, calling themselves “democrats.” At the First Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR (May-June 1990), B.N. was elected Chairman of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR. Yeltsin.

After Yeltsin came to power in Russia, the confrontation between the Union and Russian leadership sharply intensified. On June 12, 1990, the Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the RSFSR, which proclaimed the independence of Russia and the supremacy of Russian laws over all-Union ones.

The declaration of independence by Russia and other union republics raised the question of the continued existence of the Soviet Union. In April-May 1991, negotiations between M.S. took place in Novo-Ogarevo (the residence of the President of the USSR near Moscow). Gorbachev with the leaders of the union republics on the issue of a new union treaty. His project provided for the creation of a democratic federation of equal Soviet sovereign republics. In this case, a single state would exist only formally. The signing of the agreement was scheduled for August 20, 1991.

In order to stop the ongoing collapse of the USSR, part of the top party and state leadership tried to remove Gorbachev from power on August 19, 1991. A state of emergency was introduced in the country for a period of 6 months, rallies and strikes were prohibited. The creation of the State Emergency Committee was announced - the State Committee for the State of Emergency in the USSR (August 19-21, 1991). Its members included Vice-President of the USSR G.I. Yanaev (head), Prime Minister of the USSR V.S. Pavlov, KGB Chairman V.A. Kryuchkov, USSR Minister of Defense D.T. Yazov and other government officials. Troops were sent to Moscow.

From the very beginning, the members of the State Emergency Committee behaved indecisively, and their actions were uncoordinated. The Russian leadership led by B.N. offered active resistance to the State Emergency Committee. Yeltsin, who called on Muscovites to take to the streets. Not expecting such a reaction from the Russian authorities and residents of Moscow, on August 21, members of the State Emergency Committee ceased their activities. On August 22, 1991, they were arrested.

The events of August 19-21 accelerated the collapse of the Soviet Union. On August 23, by his decree B.N. Yeltsin banned the activities of the CPSU on Russian territory, which made the further existence of the USSR impossible. At the end of August, Ukraine, and then other republics, announced the creation of independent states.

On December 8, 1991, in Belovezhskaya Pushcha (Belarus), the presidents of Russia (B.N. Yeltsin), Ukraine (L.N. Kravchuk) and Belarus (S.S. Shushkevich) announced the termination of the existence of the USSR. At the same time, the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States was proclaimed (CIS).

On December 25, 1991, Gorbachev resigned as president. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ceased to exist.

Foreign policy. As problems within the country grew, the USSR's foreign policy became more accommodating. In 1989-1991 there was a surrender of positions to Western countries to receive political and financial support. In February 1989, the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan was completed. M.S. Gorbachev announced his abandonment of the policy of interference in the affairs of allies in the Warsaw Treaty Organization. Soviet troops were also withdrawn from the countries participating in the Warsaw Warsaw War. As a result, communist regimes in Eastern Europe collapsed. On November 9, 1989, the Berlin Wall, a symbol of the confrontation between two systems, was destroyed. In 1990, the unification of East and West Germany took place.

In 1991, the CMEA and the Warsaw Pact Organization ceased their activities. In July 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START-1) was signed in Moscow. As a result of the “new political thinking,” the USSR’s position in the world was lost, the Cold War ended