Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev passed away on the 30th (local time) at the age of 91. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 in recognition of his contribution to leading major reforms (perestroika) during his tenure in power and ending the East-West Cold War. World leaders honored him as “a great man who brought freedom and peace to the end of the Cold War.”
Russia’s Central Clinical Hospital announced on the same day that former President Gorbachev had passed away following a long illness. He will be buried next to his wife Raisa Gorbachev, who is buried in the cemetery of Novodevich Monastery in Moscow, Russia.
Born in March 1931, the son of a peasant, Gorbachev graduated from the Moscow State University of Law in 1955. He began his communist activities in 1962 and held various positions. He reached the peak of power in March 1985 at the age of 54 when he was elected General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.
The two words that condense his reign are ‘perestroika’ and ‘glasnost (openness)’. Prior to being elected general secretary of the Communist Party, Gorbachev visited several Western countries and asked, ‘Why can’t we live as well as them, even though we have so much natural resources?’ This is why he introduced market economy elements to revive the Soviet economy.
Gorbachev met then-US President Ronald Reagan in Switzerland in November 1985 and shook hands, easing decades of hostility between the two countries and creating an atmosphere of reconciliation. In May 1988, he began the withdrawal of his troops from Afghanistan, and the US-Soviet summit in Malta in 1989 officially declared the end of the Cold War. He became the first president of the USSR in 1989. In 1990 he accepted the reunification of East and West Germany. The West gave him the nickname ‘Gorby’ and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for his work, including ending the Cold War.
Gorbachev had a summit meeting with then-President Roh Tae-woo in June 1990 and established diplomatic ties with South Korea in October of that year. In 1991, he became the first Soviet leader to visit Korea. Koreans also showed a closeness to him, saying that the point on his forehead is similar to that of the Korean Peninsula.
World leaders expressed their condolences over his death. President Yun Seok-yeol said, “As a leader who brought reconciliation and peace by ending the Cold War era of confrontation and conflict, he was a pioneer who established a solid framework for friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries through the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1990. will be remembered and protected for a long time.” US President Joe Biden “was a courageous leader with extraordinary insight and has contributed to a safer world and greater freedom for millions of people.” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that “it played a decisive role in ending the Cold War and paving the way for a free Europe”. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his deepest condolences. Gorbachev also issued a critical statement, arguing that it was the wrong thing to do right following Russia invaded Ukraine. The West considers Gorbachev’s friendly relations with the United States to rapidly collapse following Putin took office.
However, in Russia, there are also considerable negative reviews of Gorbachev. “Some saw him as an idealist and reformer, but others saw him as a traitor or an American puppet,” the Russian news agency Sputnik said.
In August 1991, when conservatives launched a coup d’état, his political position sharply narrowed. In December of that year, Ukraine and others declared independence and separated from the Soviet Union. That month, Gorbachev resigned as president, putting an end to his six-year reign. Shortly therefollowing, the Soviet Union was disbanded.
The Russian people are blaming Gorbachev for the downfall of a superpower that once stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States. He ran for President of Russia in 1996, but lost face with only 0.5% of the vote.
Reporter Lee Go-woon [email protected]
