Download Perestroika: A restructuring of the Soviet economy to

Cold War Project
Key Terms
Perestroika: A restructuring of the Soviet economy to permit more local decision making,
started by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985.
Timeline
1985 -Gorbachev is fed up with inefficiency of Soviet economy, proposes perestroika: economic
restructuring
1986 -Gorbachev makes changes to revive Soviet economy by allowed independent parties more
control over pricing
1987 - Gorbachev knows that if economy is to improve, the government would have to loosen its
grip on Soviet society, introduces third policy, democratization, which allowed gradual opening
of Soviet economy.
1987 - This plan requires the election of a new legislative body.
198?- Soviet foreign policy changes, nuclear weapons banned with ranges of 300 to 3,400 miles
Summary
Times are changing, and for Russia, that means finding a new leader to guide the USSR into a
new age. Gorbachev, a young Russian working his way up the political ladder, dreaming up a
scheme for Russia to join numerous other nations and become a free-ish country. Eventually,
Gorbachev made such an impact that we was elected as the Soviet Union’s President, and
quickly put his new ideas into action. Many Russian citizens were pleasantly surprised by the
outcomes of Gorbachev’s reign, praising him for reopening churches and allowing the freedom
of speech. Gorbachev called his plan “perestroika”, which is Russian translates roughly to
“openness”. Perestroika also gave the commoners a voice, allowing them to vote for their
candidates to create a stronger USSR. Gorbachev’s impactful decision to grow liberalism in
Russia has made the great nation what it is today, a feat worth noting.
Bullet Point Notes
- Due to the new openness of the Soviet Union, Soviet citizens got outraged at the
economic problems
- Gorbachev Blamed the problems on the Soviet Union’s system of central planning, gov.
told businesses how much to produce, pay, and what prices to charge
- Gorbachev then brought up the idea of perestroika, economic restructuring
- Under perestroika businesses made decisions on their own
- Gorbachev also introduced democratization, where voters could now choose who they
wanted to elect for each office
- The elections produced many surprises, lesser known candidates won the elections
-
-
Russian Foreign Policy also changed
Gorbachev realized the Soviet Union could not spend as much on military as the United
States could, so instead he focused on limiting the amount of military that the US could
build up
Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty,
which banned the use nuclear missiles between the US and Russia
Quiz:
1.
a)
b)
c)
d)
What does the russian word, “Perestroika” mean?
A restructuring of the Soviet economy to permit more local decision making.
Soviet Pig
Political unrest in the time after war.
An economic policy that, in english, is called democratization.
2.
a)
b)
c)
d)
What did President Ronald Reagan and Gorbachev sign?
An agreement to stop exporting to Germany
Soviet Pig
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
A policy that reinstates the League of Nations
3.
a)
b)
c)
d)
What new policy did Gorbachev unveil in 1987?
A policy that reinstates the League of Nations.
Soviet Pig
The intermediate-range nuclear forces treaty
Democratization