Mikhail Gorbachev

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Mikhail Gorbachev was born on March 2, 1931, in the agricultural region of Stavropol and became the leader of the Soviet Union in 1985. Embarking on a new openness with the outside world not previously seen under Soviet rule, Gorbachev became quite popular in the West.

Gorbachev attended Moscow University, where he studied law. In 1953 he married Raisa Titorenko, a fellow student. Then he returned to Stavropol and began to move gradually upward in the Communist Party. Following the death of Communist leader Konstantin Chernenko in 1985, Gorbachev was elected General Secretary.[1] As General Secretary, Gorbachev improved relations with the United States' president, Ronald Reagan. He embarked on an extensive mission of reforming the Communist Soviet Union. He succeeded in reforming it politically, economically, and socially under policies known as glasnost, which means "openness", and perestroika, meaning "restructuring". It is questioned to what extent he intended to bring about the wholesale changes that swept the Soviet Union and its satellites and how much events moved out of control.

He was "relieved" of office in 1991 after successfully bringing down 74 years of feared Communist rule and surviving a temporary "coup" by the old Communist guard that didn't take off and quickly fizzled. Although still thought of fondly in the West, Gorbachev did not maintain his popularity at home. After his "retirement" he was forced to live on a pension that deteriorated quickly in value as the Russian currency collapsed in the post-Communist era. Gorbachev was awarded the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize.[2]

In 1992 Gorbachev founded The International Foundation for Socio-Economic and Political Studies (The Gorbachev Foundation), an independent think tank committed to "democratic values and moral, humanistic principles in the life of society".[3] He is also the founding president and a board member of the environmental group Green Cross International.[4]

Religious views

Gorbachev, as Soviet president, campaigned for the establishment of freedom of religion laws in the Soviet Union, viewing the exercise of religious expression as a valuable source of societal cohesion. Yet he remained a lifelong atheist.[5]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9037405/Mikhail-Gorbachev
  2. ↑ Nobel Peace Prize
  3. ↑ http://www.gorby.ru/en/rubrs.asp?rubr_id=302
  4. ↑ http://dev.gci.creativ-conseil.ch/joomy/
  5. ↑ http://www.christianpost.com/article/20080324/31660_Gorbachev_Dispels_'Closet_Christian'_Rumors%3B_Says_He_is_Atheist.htm

External links

Retrieved from "http://www.conservapedia.com/Mikhail_Gorbachev"
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