The last leader of the Soviet Union was praised for creating a freer world. Others said his missteps ended the Soviet Union and created instability.
Mikhail Gorbachev is being remembered by world leaders and commentators as a courageous statesman who peacefully ended the Cold War as well as for presiding over the collapse of a global superpower.
Remembrances of Gorbachev poured in following news that the last leader of the Soviet Union died Tuesday at age 91. Gorbachev sought better ties with the West and more economic and political freedom in the Soviet Union, eventually seeing its dissolution in 1991. The world leader’s legacy is being given a fresh look as tensions between Russia and the West have returned.
After serving as general secretary of the Soviet Communist Party, Gorbachev became the first and only president of the Soviet Union in March 1990. As general secretary, Gorbachev negotiated a treaty with U.S. President Ronald Reagan to reduce both countries’ nuclear weapons stockpiles and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for «the leading role he played in the radical changes in East-West relations.»
Gorbachev also famously pushed for perestroika, or «restructuring,» and glasnost, or «openness» that reduced government control over the economy and Soviet political life. But his reforms weren’t universally accepted, and in 1991 a group of hardliners mounted an unsuccessful coup to oust him.
«At inflection points in history some leaders rise, others falter,» commentator and veteran journalist Dan Rather said in a tweet.
