Gorbachev, Mikhail Sergeyevich

Russian politician, leader and president of the USSR 1985–91. He attempted to revive the faltering Soviet economy through economic reforms (perestroika) and liberalize society and politics through glasnost (openness) and competition in elections, and to halt the arms race abroad through arms reduction agreements with the USA. He pulled Soviet troops out of Afghanistan and allowed the Soviet-bloc states in central Europe greater autonomy, a move which soon led to the break-up of the USSR and end of the Cold War. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1990 for promoting greater openness in the USSR and helping to end the Cold War.

Gorbachev radically changed the style of Soviet leadership, but encountered opposition to the pace of change from both conservatives and radicals. His reforms failed to improve the economy and resulted in ethnic and nationalist tensions within the USSR, culminating in demands for independence in the Baltic and Caucasus regions. Communist hardliners briefly overthrew Gorbachev in August 1991 and within months the USSR had dissolved and Gorbachev resigned as president. He contested the Russian presidential elections in June 1996, but polled only 0.5% of the vote.