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END OF THE COLD WARUnit 9: Cold War
Chapter 34 Section 1
Decline of the USSR
◦By 1980, USSR was doing poorly◦1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader; promoted perestroika and glasnost◦ Perestroika: “restructuring”; policy intended to radically reform Soviet economy
◦Glasnost: “openness”; policy intended to give more rights and freedoms to the Soviet people and promote a willingness to criticize the USSR to seek solutions
◦Both policies play a large part in the USSR’s collapse
Arms Race Slows
◦Gorbachev and US president Reagan wanted to slow arms
race
◦ Both wanted to reduce military budgets to solve domestic problems
◦ USSR to focus on perestroika; US to focus on debt reduction
◦Gorbachev stopped supporting satellites
◦ Mostly peaceful revolution swept E. Europe, overthrew communist gov’ts
◦Germany reunified 1990
◦USSR dissolved 1991
◦Cold War over
Winds of Change◦ W. European economies mostly recovered by 1980s
◦ 1993, European Union (EU) formed
◦ Established the euro as common currency
◦ Between 2004-2007, twelve E. European countries joined
◦ Reunified Germany became leading power in Europe
◦ In the US, spending increased from $631 billion to >$1 trillion under
Reagan; debt tripled
◦ George HW Bush became president, unable to deal with debt; allowed Clinton to win in 1992
◦ 1993: US, Canada, Mexico signed North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA)
◦ Made trade easier, more profitable