The Cold War dominated international relations for more than four decades. From the late 1940s, the United States and Soviet Union competed for political, military and ideological influence across the world. However, by the 1980s, the Soviet system faced serious economic and political problems.

The arrival of Mikhail Gorbachev as Soviet leader in 1985 transformed the situation.

Gorbachev recognised that the Soviet Union could no longer sustain the economic burden of the arms race while maintaining control over Eastern Europe. Consequently, he introduced reforms designed to modernise Soviet society and the economy. He also pursued a new relationship with the United States and became increasingly unwilling to use military force to preserve communist governments in Eastern Europe.

These decisions helped reduce Cold War tensions. At the same time, however, they weakened the political system Gorbachev was attempting to reform.

This created a crucial historical paradox: Gorbachev helped end the Cold War partly by reforming the Soviet Union, but those reforms also contributed to the collapse of Soviet control.

For History students, understanding Gorbachev and the end of the Cold War is therefore essential. The period demonstrates how economic weakness, political reform, diplomacy and popular pressure combined to transform the international system.

Table of Contents

1. Why Was the Soviet Union in Crisis?
2. Gorbachev Becomes Soviet Leader
3. What Were Glasnost and Perestroika?
4. Gorbachev and the Arms Race
5. The Reagan-Gorbachev Summits
6. The INF Treaty and Nuclear Disarmament
7. Why Did Gorbachev Abandon the Brezhnev Doctrine?
8. The Collapse of the Eastern Bloc
9. The Fall of the Berlin Wall
10. German Reunification
11. The Collapse of the Soviet Union
12. How Important Was Gorbachev in Ending the Cold War?
13. Historical Evaluation: Who Ended the Cold War?
14. Key Questions and Analytical Conclusions
15. Conclusion

Cold War Revision Guide: Rise, Rivalry and Collapse 1945 – 1991