Fall of the Soviet Union

The Soviet war in Afghanistan proved to be an overwhelming failure for the communist superpower, bringing the nation to the brink of bankruptcy. The death of Brezhnev and his succession by Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev signaled a new era in U.S.–Soviet relations. Gorbachev realized that the Soviet Union was in dire economic straits and could not afford to continue the costly arms race. The Soviet Union resumed arms negotiations with the United States, leading to a 1987 agreement banning intermediate-range nuclear missiles. Arms talks continued under Reagan's successor, George H. W. Bush, into the late 1980s.

Gorbachev's encouragement of reform in the Soviet Union and Eastern European nations encouraged anticommunist forces in the satellite states to press for the dismantling of their communist governments. Beginning in 1989, one Eastern European nation after another replaced its communist government with capitalist and democratic institutions. Germany, divided since the end of World War II, finally reunited in 1990. By the end of 1991, the government of the Soviet Union was in disarray, prompting the republics that composed the nation to form their own independent governments. The rapid disintegration of the Soviet Union and the wholesale abandonment of communist philosophy by the nations that emerged brought a swift conclusion to the Cold War.

The bipolar world that existed for nearly half a century after World War II has been replaced by one in which the United States is the sole dominant superpower. Although relations between the United States and Russia (the former Soviet Union) have been much closer since the end of the Cold War, the two still have differences and areas of conflicting interest. Like many other nations, Russia is concerned about how the United States will use its unrivaled power. The U.S. policy in the Middle East is especially worrisome to Russia, which has a large Muslim population and is surrounded by many majority-Muslim states that were once part of the Soviet Union. For its part, the United States is worried about the authoritarian policies of Russian president Vladimir Putin. The U.S. leaders are wary of a return to dictatorship in Russia that could mean a return to Cold War rivalry. Although the old Cold War has ended, both powers must work to prevent its repetition in the future.

Entry Citation:

"Cold War." Encyclopedia of United States National Security. 2005. SAGE Publications. 9 Nov. 2008. <http://www.sage-ereference.com/nationalsecurity/Article_n115.html>.

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