During the year of 1983, NATO implemented a nuclear war exercise. This caused fear in the Soviet Union. The U.S.S.R. believed that NATO implemented this exercise to prepare for a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union. As a response to this action and assumption the Soviet union was preparing for a counterattack. At this time the leader of the Soviet Union, Andropov, orders for the country to be ready for nuclear war. Not only was their country warned, but also other Warsaw Pact countries. This leads to fear across countries within the Soviet sphere of influence. When Reagan had thought this was a joke and had not taken these warnings seriously. When he had realized that it was not a joke he informed the Soviet Union that the exercise was
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The letter in which Reagan had written to Gorbachev, Reagan stated, “ I would like to take this opportunity to underscore my hope that we can in the months and years ahead develop a more stable and constructive relationship between our two countries.”(Reagan, 1985) This basically shows to us as historians the shift in opinion towards negotiations with the Soviet Union that was different from the opinions he had with the Soviet Union during the period of time when Brezhnev was in power and had requested to negotiate. Reagan goes as far to be stating how he questioned the actions of the Soviet Union and their “Commitment to the peaceful resolution of outstanding issues in accord with international law.”(Reagan, 1981) This shows us how Reagan had view the Soviet Union and had now planned on having any communication with the Soviet Union in terms of policies towards …show more content…
Even though his family had not been affected by Stalinization and was well off, his maternal grandfather, leader of a state farm, was arrested for “anti-revolutionary activity”.(Sternthal,1997) After his grandfather was arrest, his grandfather was “tortured, and set to the gulag. He was freed after fourteen months only because a family acquaintance interceded on his behalf in the local prosecutor’s office.”(Sternthal, 1997) It was because of these experiences that Gorbachev had believed Stalin to be ignorant of “the state”.(Sternthal, 1997) Afterwards he worked his way around the government and gained power. The life in which Gorbachev had lived and shown his the problems with the Soviet Union and had encouraged him to make changes when he had come to power. It is because of that mindset that is similar to Reagan’s in terms of provoking change for peace that the leadership of Gorbachev contributed to the end of the Cold
The letter in which Reagan had written to Gorbachev, Reagan stated, “ I would like to take this opportunity to underscore my hope that we can in the months and years ahead develop a more stable and constructive relationship between our two countries.”(Reagan, 1985) This basically shows to us as historians the shift in opinion towards negotiations with the Soviet Union that was different from the opinions he had with the Soviet Union during the period of time when Brezhnev was in power and had requested to negotiate. Reagan goes as far to be stating how he questioned the actions of the Soviet Union and their “Commitment to the peaceful resolution of outstanding issues in accord with international law.”(Reagan, 1981) This shows us how Reagan had view the Soviet Union and had now planned on having any communication with the Soviet Union in terms of policies towards …show more content…
Even though his family had not been affected by Stalinization and was well off, his maternal grandfather, leader of a state farm, was arrested for “anti-revolutionary activity”.(Sternthal,1997) After his grandfather was arrest, his grandfather was “tortured, and set to the gulag. He was freed after fourteen months only because a family acquaintance interceded on his behalf in the local prosecutor’s office.”(Sternthal, 1997) It was because of these experiences that Gorbachev had believed Stalin to be ignorant of “the state”.(Sternthal, 1997) Afterwards he worked his way around the government and gained power. The life in which Gorbachev had lived and shown his the problems with the Soviet Union and had encouraged him to make changes when he had come to power. It is because of that mindset that is similar to Reagan’s in terms of provoking change for peace that the leadership of Gorbachev contributed to the end of the Cold