Changes

'''Perestroika''', which means "restructuring", was a new policy introduced by [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] in the [[Soviet Union]] to allow the people to own small businesses. Gorbachev tried to transform the stagnant, inefficient command economy into a decentralized, market-oriented economy. Under "Perestroika", open elctions elections were held, and industrial managers were granted greter automony. It also contributed to the complete collapse of the [[Soviet Union]]. See also [[glasnost]], its social and cultural counterpart.