We explain what Perestroika and Glasnost were in the reformist policies of Mikhail Gorbachev. In addition, its relationship with the fall of the USSR.
What were Perestroika and the Glasnost?
It is known as Perestroika and Glasnost to the fundamental principles of the reformist policy of Mikhail Gorbachev in the Soviet Union (USSR) in the late 1980s. The word Perestroika means “restructuring” in Russian and aimed to generate a structural change in the political organization of the government with the aim of improving the Soviet economy. The Russian word Glasnost means “Opening” and was linked to the idea of abandoning political censorship with the aim of democratizing Russian society.
These reformist initiatives of Gorbachev were applied between 1985 and 1991 and are framed in the deep crisis that the Soviet Union and the entire communist oriental block was going through. Gorbachev's original intention was not to radically alter the structure of the USSR or abandon communism, but introduce reforms that accelerate the economy and fight corruption .
However, with the future of the facts the nature of these policies was radicalized. By 1987, Gorbachev was introducing elements of a market economy and, by 1989, the first multiple candidates elections in the USSR were held.
For many specialists, The implementation of Perestroika and Glasnost accelerated the crisis and led to the end of the Cold War with the departure of the European countries of the communist bloc, the reunification of Germany and, finally, the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Historical context of Perestroika and Glasnost
When Mikhail Gorbachev assumed the government of the Soviet Union in 1985, The economy was stagnant the industrial production levels were very limited, there was little circulation of consumer goods and the living conditions of the population were very low.
Gorbachev argued that the previous leaders of the Soviet Union had sacrificed the well -being of Soviet citizens for their competence with the western powers of the capitalist bloc within the framework of the Cold War. In recent decades industrial development had concentrated on the production of war and military resources instead of investing in consumer goods for the civilian population.
In that context, Gorbachev believed that it was necessary to reduce economic expenses oriented to military defense and for that We had to improve relationships with Western powers . On the other hand, economic investment should concentrate on the production of goods that improve the quality of life of citizens.
Perestroika
Perestroika incorporated, throughout the years of the Gorbachev government, different measures aimed at the economic and political restructuring of the Soviet Union.
The economic reforms of Perestroika
During the first years, the economic reform of Perestroika was promoted under the idea of ”acceleration.” Different ministries and secretariats of Economics were unified with the objective of Improve the production of certain fundamental items for the quality of life of Soviet society such as the production of agricultural machinery and housing construction. Thus, it was sought to improve the quality of the goods.
By 1987, the emphasis of economic reform was put in the consolidation of a “market socialism.” The existence of small private businesses and the formation of workers' cooperatives was legalized to offer services and develop manufactured goods. Then, the investment of foreign capital in conjunction with Soviet firms was enabled to promote industrial production of consumer goods.
Perestroika's political reforms
At the beginning of his government, Gorbachev sought to make some modest modifications of the political organization. I did not seek to break the Soviet system but generate a renovated version of communism, in search of achieving a more democratic socialism .
In 1987, he called elections with multiple candidates for secretariat positions of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (PCUS, the party that ruled the USSR since its creation in the 1920s). Until then, the candidacies were secretly chosen by the PCUS politician.
Besides, began to promote democratization in the election of officials For different levels of government. In 1988, he created a new legislative body that incorporated candidates elected in popular elections, candidates appointed by the PCUS and officials elected by other important public institutions.
The first elections demonstrated the importance of this change and the candidates promoted by the most radical reforms of the Soviet system obtained benches in the new legislature. In 1990, he created the position of president of the Soviet Union elected by Congress and, in this way, took weight to the PCUS in decision making.
The International Perestroika Policy
One of the most important aspects of Perestroika was the change in the international policy of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev argued that to improve the Soviet economy it was essential to rebuild political relations with Western powers, to be able to decrease expenses in military defense and reinvest capital in the production of goods to improve the quality of life of the population.
In that context, there were three situations of international character in which Gorbachev's foreign policy made a fundamental change.
- In relation to the communist countries of the Eastern Block Gorbachev promoted the principle of non -interference. He promised that the Soviet Union was not going to intervene in the internal policy of socialist countries and supported the reformist factions of communist parties throughout its government.
- In relation to its military power Gorbachev announced the unilateral reduction of the Soviet army and declared the freedom of each communist country to choose its own path regarding military disarmament. In addition, he proposed that all medium range missiles be eliminated in Europe and that by 2000, all nuclear weapons are dismantled.
- Regarding competition with the United States Due to the influence on the political future of the international scenario, Gorbachev demonstrated his non -intervention policy in three fundamental issues: he negotiated the end of the Afghanistan war and the withdrawal of Soviet troops in 1989, he accepted the reunification of Germany and his incorporation into NATO, and supported the United States and Kuwait in the 1990 and 1991 Gulf War.
Glasnost
The reforms framed within the Glasnost were oriented to the liberalization of the political and intellectual life of the Soviet citizens. Gorbachev believed that greater freedom of thought and expression was going to lead to The population saw the need for reforms and support the government against the most conservative opposition within the PCUS.
In 1986, the Gorbachev government He released censorship and encouraged the media to discuss the issues that had been taboo in the Soviet Union . It became possible to talk about the problems of the Soviet population, such as crime, prostitution, the environment (that same year had happened the misfortune of Crernobil) and poverty. Books, films and works that until then had been prohibited circulated again.
This allowed the Soviet society to reflect on its past and its present, and discuss fundamental issues of the Soviet system, such as the privileges of PCUS members. In turn, generated a new mentality and criticized the traditional Stalinist vision of the bipolar world in which the West was seen as a hostile force against the peaceful Soviet Union. The media began to show another image of life in the United States and the West that revealed the best quality of life of its inhabitants and the best functioning of its democratic institutions.
Freedom of expression and transparency of information promoted by Glasnost also reached the Armed Forces. For the first time, Citizens could know the economic expenses, the amount of troops and the resources destined for the military industry . Gorbachev hoped that with these revelations, popular opinion would legitimize its disarmament policy and the need to reorient economic investment towards the production of goods for consumption.
On the other hand, the Soviet population was also able to reflect on their own nature and establish a new mentality in relation to their priorities, their values and their loyalties. The greatest freedom of expression and political activity revived the nationalist movements of the different populations that were under the domain of the Soviet Union.
Consequences of Perestroika and the Glasnost
As Perestroika and Glasnost reforms became more radical, they began to generate The opposition of the most conservative faction of the PCUS of the high -ranking officers of the KGB (the intelligence agency) and the Soviet army. These officials saw how the reforms more and more limited their power and believed that the Soviet Union was weakening the criticism and lifting of nationalist movements.
In 1989 and 1990, more and more anti -communist manifestations began to be in the population. Both, Conservative factions began to organize and violence began to be seen in the streets . PCUS members demanded the use of force to suppress manifestations and Gorbachev refused.
This led to, in 1991, conservatives tried to carry out a coup d'etat to expel Gorbachev from the government. However, the coup was a failure and Gorbachev managed to stay in power, but saw his deeply delegitimated authority .
In December 1991, the presidents of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus (three of the republics that constituted the Soviet Union) dissolved the USSR and created a communion of independent states in their place.
Perestroika and Glasnost guided the attempt to bring a revolutionary change in the Soviet Union through an evolution of controlled reforms from above. However, its effects went much further and led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Perestroika in Gorbachev's words
To explain its reformist policy, Gorbachev presented the notion of Perestroika as a fundamental principle to improve the lives of Soviet citizens. In his book Perestroika and the new mentality Published in 1988 Gorbachev sought to define, explain and defend the need to reform the Soviet political and economic system.
Perestroika and the new mentality, by Mikhail Gorbachev
1988
“I have written this book with the desire to address the peoples; to those of the USSR, of the United States and, from any country (…)
I have written this book with faith in the common sense of these citizens. I am sure that they, like us and this is the main thing, are concerned about the fate of our planet. (…)
Perestroika is not a scientific treaty or a propaganda pamphlet, although the analytical opinions, conclusions and approaches that the reader will find in the book are based, of course, on theoretical premises and well -defined values. Rather, it consists of a collection of thoughts and reflections about Perestroika, the problems we have raised, the size of the necessary changes and the complexity, responsibility and singularity of our time (…) Much of it deals with the new political thought and the philosophy of our foreign policy. (…)
Currently, Perestroika is in the focus of the intellectual life of our society, which is logical because it influences the future of this country (…) also those of more socialist countries demonstrate a natural and pronounced interest in Soviet restructuring. They are also going through a difficult but extremely important search period in their evolution, devising and experiencing new ways to accelerate economic and social development. The success of these attempts depends largely on our interaction, our joints and joint companies (…)
There is no doubt that the Soviet Union is living a crucial period. The Communist Party conducted a critical analysis of the situation that had been reached in the mid -1980s and formulated the policy of Perestroika or restructuring, a policy tending to accelerate the economic and social development of the country and to renew all the spheres of life. The Soviet people understand and accept this policy: Perestroika has vivified society as a whole (…).
In the United States, as in all west, there are different interpretations of Perestroika. For example, it has been said that it is a measure imposed by the disastrous situation of the Soviet economy and that it implies a disenchantment of socialism and a crisis of its ideals and last objectives. Nothing is further from the truth than this type of interpretations, whatever the reasons for those who maintain them.
Of course, Perestroika has been considerably stimulated by our dissatisfaction with the way things have gone in our country in recent times. But the most important of the elements that have inspired it has been the understanding that all the potential of socialism was not being fully used. Now, on the seventieth anniversary of our revolution, we realize this with special clarity (…)
I want to warn from the first moment that Perestroika has been more difficult than we imagined at first. We had to modify many of our evaluations. Even so, with each step forward we feel more convinced that we are on the right track and do things correctly.
There are those who affirm that it has been the ambitious objectives set by Perestroika in our country that have motivated the peace proposals that we have recently presented in international forums. Such interpretation is too simple. It is a well -known fact that the Soviet Union has been working for peace and cooperation for a long time, and has presented many proposals that, if accepted, would have normalized the international situation (…)
Our new way of thinking, however, goes even further. The world is living an atmosphere not only of nuclear danger, but also of great unresolved social problems, of new tensions caused by the scientific-technological revolution and the exacerbation of global problems. (…). The accumulation of armaments, particularly nuclear, make a world war for accidents, casually, either by a technical failure or for psychic cause. In this case, all living beings on Earth would be victims (…)
In a word, we, in the Soviet direction, have come to the conclusion and we will not tire of repeating it, that a new political thought is indispensable. (…)
What is the scope of the new political thought? Actually, this covers all the main problem of our time (…)
Politics has to be based on realities. And the most impressive truth of today consists in the concentration of a military arsenal colossal, including nuclear, in the hands of the United States and the Soviet Union. This imposes on our countries a special responsibility first of the world. Driven by this conscience, we sincerely strive, to clean up the Soviet-American relations, and we want to achieve even the minimum of mutual understanding essential to resolve the issues on which the destinations of the world depend.
We sincerely say that hegemonist aspirations and globalist claims are unacceptable (…)
We have no bad intention towards the American people. We want and we are willing to collaborate in all areas. But collaboration must be based on equality, compression and mutual advance.
Sometimes not only disappoints us, but also leads us to serious meditations that our country is perceived in the United States as an aggressor, as “the Empire of Evil” (…).
Time runs and we can lose it. You have to act. The situation does not allow to wait for the ideal moment: the broad and constructive dialogue is necessary today (…).
We are far from thinking that only our approach is the truthful. We do not have universal recipes, but we are willing to search, frankly and honestly, together with the United States and the other countries, the answers to all questions, even the most difficult.“
Gorbachev Mikhail
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References
- Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia (2023). “Perestroika”. Britannica Encyclopedia
https://www.britannica.com/ - Tato, Mi, Bubello, JP, Castello, AM and Campos, E. (2011). History of the second half of the twentieth century. Estrada
- Van Dijk, R., Gray, WG, Savranskaya, S., Suri, J., & Zhai, Q. (eds.). (2013). “Perestroika”, “Gorbachev” and “Glasnost”. Encyclopedia of the Cold War. Routledge.
