New Delhi: When we are thinking of partitions, India or Pakistan usually appears first. It’s hard not to think of 1947, the year that the British divided our nation into two and left lasting marks. There’s a second split that makes the one before seem tiny – a nation with 22 million square kilometres which was split into fifteen nations. This is the tale of the dissolution of the Soviet Union, which was the largest split in human history, brimming with violence, revolution and utter disintegration, and is important to know about.
Imagine the following scenario: It is the Soviet Union, or USSR, which began in 1922. It was a huge socialist nation composed of various republics, with Russia as its main component. It was the largest country in the world, extending across the globe, as its Communist Party ran everything. In 1991, it had been disintegrated and was broken up into Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Moldova. They all were independent countries with their own laws and identities. How did a strong country crumble so badly? Let’s look at it.
From Tsars To Soviets: A Rough Start
Prior to when there was the USSR, Russia was ruled by tsars, sort of similar to emperors from the Romanov family, who held all the power between 1613 and 1917. They ruled everything – the army and the land as well as the people. However, there was a lot of trouble beneath the surface. The economy was shaky, and there was plenty of inequity, which angered people. In 1917, they’d been through enough. The February Revolution was a result of protests and strikes that forced Tsar Nicholas II to step down in order to make way for an interim government. However, that didn’t last long. Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky joined forces and led an October Revolution, kicking out the interim government and beginning Soviet rule.
In December 1922, following a bloody civil war, the Bolsheviks were in control, and then the USSR was created. The USSR was a communist nation with everything being run from the top, with assurances of equality. But managing such a large country was difficult. It was a risky venture, but for some time it did seem to work. The USSR gained prominence on the international stage, particularly following World War II, when it was able to take over the Baltic states, including Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, in the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which was controversial. It became a superpower, akin to the United States, leading the socialist nations.
Cracks In The System
This is when things started to get complicated. In the 1970s, the Soviet Union started having problems. The economy was not doing well, and the products weren’t coming out at the same speed, and they were unable to catch up to the West technologically. The government splurged a lot of dollars on its military as well as aiding other nations, which depleted its resources. The government kept prices low for essential items, but there was a shortage, and people were annoyed. Imagine standing in the line for hours only to discover no products on the shelves? This was the case for the majority of people.
The Communist Party’s influence began to wane. The nationalist movement began to emerge in countries such as Ukraine and Lithuania, where people longed for independence. The arms race against the US as well as a devastating loss in Afghanistan and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 made the situation even more difficult. The Soviet system focused on control and was unable to cope with the increasing anger. In December 1991, the USSR broke up, split into 15 nations. The once vast country was now a mere memory.
Why It’s Important
This wasn’t something that only was happening in the realm of politics; it transformed the world in general. The collapse of the Soviet Union was a sign that communism wasn’t as effective all over the world, and it altered the power of those who ruled. For India the result was losing an important friend, which meant we had to review our plans for other countries. The new 15 countries are still trying to determine their identities, and some, like Ukraine, are caught stuck in the middle of the global issues today.
What’s the most important thing to be aware of? The collapse of the Soviet Union shows that even the most powerful countries could fall if they do not address the issues inside. It shows us how to be strong and able to adapt to changes and how vital it is for citizens to be heard. When we observe Independence Day, it’s worth contemplating the ways that freedom, whether you win or lose it, impacts the world.