Fall Of Russia

My cherished friend, I regret to inform you that our beloved Soviet society has ceased to exist. Our solid red flag with its magnificent gold emblem of the hammer and sickle flew above the Kremlin for the very last time on Christmas day, 1991. Prior to this gloomy day, eleven of the fifteenth Soviet republics that once made up the strong and prosperous Soviet Union, met in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, to announce that they would no longer partake in the Soviet Union, and had created a Commonwealth of independent states. Our Baltic brothers: Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia were the first to break apart, while Georgia remained as the last republic in the Soviet Union. I have served the Soviet Union as Minister of Foreign Affairs

In 1991 the Soviet Union collapsed into fifteen different countries. It changed the world geopolitical balance. Their fall ended the ownership of a superpowers with the resources of more than a ten countries. The collapse left Russia unable to own anything like the global influence that they had for many years. Before the Soviet Union collapsed representatives of eleven Soviet republics from Ukraine, the Russian Federation, Belarus, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan met and stated that they would no longer be part of the Soviet Union. Instead, they announced they will create a Commonwealth of Independent States. They did it because Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania had already stated their independence.

After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the world watched Russia closely as the largest country remaining from the former superpower built itself into a democracy. However, within a short amount of time, Russia has slipped into competitive authoritarianism, giving much of the governmental power to its current president, Vladimir Putin. In contrast, another semi-presidential system, the government of France, is a strong democracy. France’s government has been largely successful since the creation of the Fifth Republic in 1958 and the most recent constitution. In addition to this, the roles of the president and prime minister have been balanced and checked since President Charles de Gaulle stepped down in 1969. These two countries, while sharing the same basic political skeleton, are vastly different in power division and, ultimately, the success of democracy. Unlike France, Russia’s democracy slid into competitive authoritarianism because of the overpowering amount of unchecked power the president has.

Tsar Nicholas II is thought to be personally responsible for the collapse of the Russian Monarchy. His nature wasn’t well suited for the role he held therefore he was an incompetent leader. Russia was undergoing many changes and was in early stages of industrialization. This was followed by an embarrassing string of defeats of which the Tsar was badly prepared. His unsuccessful involvement in the First World War added to the disappointment in the government’s incompetence and corruption. There were many opportunities for Russia to modernize but this would require political change, which the Tsar was unwilling to do. Nicholas had many opportunities throughout his reign to reform, but destroyed his last chance of survival.

In 1989, the world saw the fall of the United Soviet Socialist Republic (U.S.S.R.), which was also known as the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was a block of 15 Communist Eastern European states that was ruled by one government with various puppet governments located throughout the states. Its collapse brought about new issues that the world had never had to deal with before. The fall of such a large block of Soviet states created many problems and some of the solutions that were used to solve these problems, as well as many of the tensions that were created during this time, still affect the world today. Some of the ramifications resulting from the Soviet Union’s collapse are still being felt; however, many problems have been solved

The main causes of the fall of the Soviet Union was because the Soviet Union couldn’t afford to keep up with the arms race during the cold war, the government couldn’t manage to keep the people content with things such as housing and food and communism government system completely failed in the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union was built on about the same territory as the Russian Empire which it succeeded. After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, Socialism was a newly formed government that was developed by a philosophy. Socialism government is when property is held in common and not individually and relationship are governed. Socialism gradual transition to Communism. Communism is a political theory that Karl Marx came up with. Communism is when the society in which property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs. The state of Bolsheviks indentation was to overcome national differences and rather to create one monolithic state based on a centralized economical and political system. This state was built on a Communist ideas, was eventually transformed into a totalitarian state when the Communist leadership had complete control over the country.

The fall of the Soviet Union gave childless American couples the opportunity to adopt needy, white children. Thousands upon thousands of children from Russia and Eastern Europe were adopted in New York during the 1990’s and 2000’s, and the vast majority of these adoptions produced genuinely happy families. The children were excited to have loving families and the adoptive parents were excited to have a child to love. However, some children had difficulty transitioning to life in the United States while others were victims of abuse. Almost every adoptive case I worked with had a happy ending. Every adoptive case except for one. I hesitate to say that the “child” in question was actually a child. Sometimes I think that I legitimately was dealing with pure evil in human form.

This week’s reading focused on the changes that took place in the Russian Federation after the presidency of George W. Bush. In class and previous readings, we got a teaser about how the start of the Obama administration in 2008 allowed for a “reset” in relations between the United States and Russia. This second portion of Elkin’s Russia Turns the Page: Historic Sketches of the End of the Post-Soviet Period: A History of the New Russia in 2007-2014. Sheds light on the events that are currently some of the most pressing issues for both nations. In addition, Elkin’s ability to offer an “insider” perspective on some of the varying power dynamics within the Russian Federation made for a very unique read.

In a similar vein, it is impossible to predict the actions of other states. While Russia may agree to have better cooperation with the United States verbally and on paper, this it not foolproof. Akin to the idea of natural desire for power, Mearsheimer in The Tragedy of Great Power Politics argues that “states can never be certain about other states’ intentions” (Mearsheimer 31). This theory is extremely important for creating a closer relationship with Russia. No matter what Russia claims they will or will not do, the United States can not be certain of Russia’s actions. Moreover, while Russia may claim to want better relations for the greater good, they could be harboring ulterior motives, with the prospect of self-gain lingering below the surface. While this threat is true for all states, the recent and current conflict with Russia makes the situation more complex. During the Cold War, the United States was the only entity standing in the way of Russian dominance, so it is likely that Russia will pounce on any opportunity to eliminate the United States in order to obtain international supremacy. And even if Russia’s intentions are clear on the day of the agreement, state’s intentions can change from day to day (Mearsheimer 31). Today Russia might want to end their age-old conflict with

The hockey game in the 1980 Olympics signified more than just the physical game that was in front of the viewers’ faces. That game was a face-off between the Soviet Union’s and United States’s determinedness and strength through an entertaining sport. The Soviets’ loss of the game and the fall of the Soviet Union itself showed just how strong and determined America was and still is. The fall of the Soviet Union was caused by various reasons and produced changes and major effects to the whole world, especially the United States.

Following the Cold War and the fall of the Soviet Union, questions regarding what the new world order would began to arise. In the article published in 1993 “The Clash of Civilizations?”, Samuel Huntington predicts that the conflicts of the new world order would be between civilization and based in culture, rather than in ideology or economics (22). In his paper, he identifies seven (or possibly eight) civilizations that will interact with each other, provided six reasons as to why these civilizations will clash, recognizes the idea that civilizations other than the West are on the rise and makes suggestions as to how the West should act if his initial is to become true. Since the publication of his article over 22 years ago, Huntington

The Soviet Union was a socialist state located on the Eurasian continent, which existed from 1922 to 1991. It was a conglomeration of a number of subnational Soviet republics with its government and economy centralized. The Soviet Union was based on a one-party system under the governorship of the Communist Party, with Moscow as its capital. Since the decline of the Soviet Union, Russia has been on the forefront seeking to bring about a resurgence of the socialist state. Current political events in Europe and in particular, those that revolve around Russia, demonstrate efforts directed towards reviving the Soviet Union. In more than one occasion, news releases have alleged that Vladimir Putin has plans underway to reignite the Soviet Union gradually and that the annexation of Crimea is evidence of this. In an article, journalist Adam Withnall noted that “…Vladimir Putin will not stop trying to expand Russia until he has “conquered” Belarus, the Baltic states and Finland,” (para. 1). Thus, there is increased tension in countries around the region, which was initially considered as being part of the Soviet Union. In truth, the Ukrainian revolution is demonstrative of Russia’s attempt to reignite the Soviet Union following the acquisition of Crimea, which will result to limiting the influence and expansion of NATO and the United States in Europe. Thus, Russia’s motivation to expand her influence

From the Beginning of the Soviet Union, the West opposed the communist nation ideologically, the capitalist West feared communism. Communism was the reason that the Soviet Union was not compatible with the Western capitalist nations. With the end of the Soviet Union and the birth of capitalism in Russia, the West believed that their eastern problem was over, although as time would tell this assumption would be incorrect. Over the next decade, Russia would exert their power over boarding nations trying to join NATO, even invading Georgia, and Ukraine. Furthermore, they would back anti-West dictators such as Assad, proving Western tensions with Russia are far from over. Political and military tensions between the West and Russia persisted after the end of the Cold War because of the rise of anti-west military elites in Russian politics. This occurred because of Russia’s inability to properly implement a free market economy. Instead, Yeltsin, the Russian president at the time, enacted “shock therapy” capitalism. This process led to corruption in Russian politics and consolidation of power among anti-western Russian elites. The anti-west security elites, such as Putin, were able to rise to power by vowing to eliminate this corruption. These elites pose a threat to the West due to their dislike and aggressiveness towards the West.

Third arrow is the most difficult to launch as it touches in the structures and regulations that have protected bested interest groups.

The year was 1989, and the Americans had just elected their 41st President of the United States: George H. W. Bush. As the former Vice-President, Bush was well acquainted with the ongoing conflict he was inheriting from the Reagan administration between the Soviet Union and the United States. He was also cognizant of the man on the other side of the strife, Mikhail Gorbachev, leader of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev was thought to be a relatively revolutionary character; he was less of a hardliner and more open to change and influence from the West. Despite this, Bush had his reservations; he ordered a comprehensive review of the Soviet-American relationship shortly after assuming office. In the report, the US National Security Advisor, Brent