World Cultures 11
Unit II: Russia
Name: Kayla Brown
Date: 4/21/15
Block: 1
Read the article entitled The Collapse of the Soviet Union and answer the questions below
thoroughly and thoughtfully.
Indentify/define each of the following: [remember to answer fully]
a. Politburo Politburo was the ruling committee of the Communist Party, this crushed all
political disagreement.
b. Soviet hard-liners Older Communist members in the Parliament
c. coup The coup played a main role in the breakup of the Soviet Union
d. CIS Loose federation of former Soviet territories
e. shock therapy- A plan created by Yeltsin, shock therapy was an abrupt shift to free
market economies. The plan created more shock than therapy.
1. Identify and define two early changes that Gorbachev made? How were these changes
different from previous Soviet leaders? Gorbachev created a new policy which was called
Glasnost. Glasnost means openness and greater freedom of expression. Another policy
Gorbachev created was Perestroika. Perestroika was de-centralization of the soviet
economy with gradual market reforms. These changes were different from previous
Soviet leaders because they never made policies like this before.
2. Why would it be ineffective for the central government to decide what should be
produced all over the country?
The party officials told the farmers and the factory members, how much they are allowed to
produce. The party officials also told them what the wages should be and the price for each
product. I think this would be ineffective for the central government to decide what should be
produced all over the country because it causes the workers to be less motivated to improve.
3. Explain Gorbachevs third reform and how it would help to move the country toward
democracy.
Gorbachevs third reform was called democratization. Democratization would help the
country move towards democracy because it gradually opens the political system. This
plan called for elections for a new legislative body. The communist party could no longer
choose all candidates.
4. What was the INF Treaty? Why did Gorbachev agree to sign it? What effect do you
think this Treaty had on the Cold War?
Gorbachev and President Reagan signed the INF Treaty in 1987. The INF stands for
Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces. This treaty had banned nuclear missiles with ranges
of 300-3,400 miles. Gorbachev agreed to sign this because the Soviet Union realized that
their economy wasnt able to afford an arms race. Gorbachev agreed to sign this treaty
because it stopped them from spending so much money.
5. What effect did Gorbachevs reforms have on Russian ethnic minorities?
The effect Gorbachev reforms had on Russian ethnic minorities was tensions began to
escalate and they called for their freedom too.
6. Which satellite nation was first to defy Gorbachev? How did Gorbachev respond?
The first satellite nation that was first to defy Gorbachev was Lithuania. They declared
their independence and Gorbachevs response was to order an economic blockade.
7. What was Boris Yeltsins position in Soviet government? Why did he oppose Gorbachev?
Boris Yeltsins position in the Soviet government was he was president. Boris was
president from 1991 to 1999.
8. What name was given to the older communist members in parliament? What opinion did they
have regarding both Gorbachev and Yeltsin? Explain your answer.
The older Communist members who were in the parliament were known as the hard-liners or
conservatives. The people were mad that Gorbachev gave up the Soviet Unions role as a
dominant force in Eastern Europe.
8. What was the August Coup? Who orchestrated it?
The August Coup was orchestrated by the hard liners. The hard liners kept Gorbachev at
his vacation home and demanded that he resign as Soviet president.
9. What were the most important reasons for the failure of the Coup?
The reasons that the Coup failed was the hard liners had ordered troops to attack the
parliament building. But they had refused so after that the military withdrew its forces
from Moscow.
10. How did the 15 soviet Republics respond to the failed Coup?
The 15 Soviet Republics responded by declaring their independence.
12. When Gorbachev stepped down as president, who became the next president?
When Gorbachev stepped down as president, Boris Yeltsin became the next president.
13. What was the new name of the Soviet Union after this coup?
The new name of the Soviet Union was Commonwealth of Independent States. CIS for short.
14. What was Yeltsin attempting to do by forming the CIS? What effect would it have on the
traditional Soviet Union?
Yeltsin was attempting to reform Russian economy to a free market economy. Yeltsin removed
price control, lowered trade barriers and ended subsides to state owned industries. This caused
thousands of people to be out of work and created an economic hardship.
15. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Yeltsin was faced with economic issues. What did
he do to attempt to solve these issues? Did it work? Why or why not?
Yeltsin attempted to solve these issues by adopting a plan called shock therapy. This was a shift
for free market economy. But this did not work and caused many factories to shut down.
16. When Yeltsin stepped down, a new leader was elected. What are some of the problems
that faced this new leader, Vladimir Putin?
The new leader, Putin had to face the rebellion from Chechnya. The rebellion went on for many
years. There were also problems with a lot of homeless children in Moscow. Putin had to deal
with that as well.
17. What was the Chechnya issue? How did Putin deal with it? Was he able to end this issue
for the new Federation? Explain.
Chechnya had declared independence from Russia. Putin dealt with the rebellion by putting
80,000 troops in Chechnya. This eventually put them all out.
18. In what ways were the policies of Gorbachev, Yeltsin, and Putin similar?
Gorbachev, Yeltsin and Putin were similar because they used military forces.
