The Collapse of Soviet Control of Eastern Europe, 1989-1990

What happened to the USSR's control over eastern Europe?

The USSR lost control of its satellite states in eastern Europe when the people of each country rose in protest against their communist governments and the USSR did not stop them.

When did the USSR lose control of its satellite states in eastern Europe?

The USSR lost control of eastern Europe between June 1989 and December 1990.

Why did the USSR lose control of its satellite states?

There were 8 key reasons:

• ❖ The USSR was struggling economically and could not afford to keep control.
• ❖ Reagan increased economic pressure by increasing military spending, forcing the USSR out of the arms race.
• ❖ Economic and social problems, plus government corruption, caused a low standard of living which weakened support for communism.
• ❖ Gorbachev encouraged eastern Europe to implement perestroika.
• ❖ Gorbachev had brought in political reforms under glasnost which encouraged eastern Europe to reform.
• ❖ Gorbachev ended the Brezhnev Doctrine and stated eastern Europe no longer had to be afraid the USSR would intervene. He also reduced military spending.
• ❖ The USSR's new approach was called the Sinatra Doctrine; eastern Europe was free to choose how it would be governed.
• ❖ Successful protest movements, such as Solidarity in Poland.

What happened in each country when USSR control was lost over eastern Europe?

There was a series of 7 main uprisings across eastern Europe:

• ❖ Hungary took down the border fence with Austria in May 1989 and allowed free elections in December.
• ❖ After massive demonstrations in Poland, independent trade union Solidarity was legalised and won the elections in June 1989.
• ❖ In September 1989, thousands of East Germans fled to Austria through Hungary. In November 1989, the border between East and West Berlin was opened and people started to pull down the Berlin Wall.
• ❖ In November 1989, a non-violent 'Velvet Revolution' occurred in Czechoslovakia that overthrew the communist government.
• ❖ Romania saw massive demonstrations that became violent when the communist government tried to crush them. The communist leader, Nicolae Ceausescu, was arrested, put on trial and executed in December 1989.
• ❖ In December 1989, the communist leader in Bulgaria resigned and free elections were held in 1990.
• ❖ In December 1990, Slovenians voted in a referendum to become independent, a decision which resulted in the break up of Yugoslavia.

What were the results of the loss of USSR control over eastern Europe?

There were 4 key results:

• ❖ All the satellite states held free elections and the communists lost their power.
• ❖ The reunification of Germany took place in 1990.
• ❖ The Warsaw Pact was no longer relevant. Military cooperation ended and in July 1991 the pact was officially dissolved.
• ❖ Inside the USSR, the loss of eastern Europe angered leading Communist Party officials. This led to an attempt to remove Gorbachev from power by the Gang of 8.