The War that Never Was; The Fall of the Soviet Empire 1985 - 1991

by David Pryce-Jones

• ISBN13: 9781842125168
• ISBN10: 1842125168
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-01-01
• Publisher: Phoenix Press

Summary

The coup of August 1991 brought an end not only to Gorbachev's political career but to the entire Soviet Union: communism imploded, the Berlin Wall had been dismantled, Germany reunified, and several European states regained their independence. This extraordinary reordering of the world, unimaginable to most people in the West, occurred remarkably peacefully. David Pryce-Jones has travelled extensively throughout the former empire to ask the major political personalities for their opinions and reactions as to why this happened. He asks why Gorbachev and the leadership didn't resort to armed violence in classic Soviet style, how much was accidental, how much was planned, and how much will never be known about the workings of the impenetrable structure which held together the Soviet bloc. Party leaders, decision-makers and first secretaries of the Soviet republics and satellites each give their version of events, often speaking frankly about Gorbachev, his motivations and actions. The result is a narrative of high drama and interpretation.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
Introduction	1	(28)
`No One Was Happy'	29	(7)
`I Would Prefer Not To'	36	(6)
`Infantile Ruses'	42	(3)
Seizing the Spoils	45	(15)
The Man Allowed to Leave	60	(3)
`Tomorrow the Whole World'	63	(13)
`We Can't Go On Like This'	76	(9)
Elections	85	(8)
The Ribbentrop--Molotov Pact	93	(3)
First Steps in Reform	96	(9)
War as Class Struggle	105	(12)
`A Man With Whom We Can Do Business'	117	(9)
National in Form	126	(9)
The Muslim Heritage	135	(8)
The Baltic Republics	143	(9)
The Wish of the Majority of Estonians	152	(10)
`You Have Killed Soviet Latvia'	162	(16)
`Communism Had Rotted From Within'	178	(16)
Solidarity and the General	194	(6)
The Round Table	200	(19)
The Iron Curtain Opens	219	(14)
`Whoever Acts Too Late Is Punished'	233	(11)
Flashpoints	244	(11)
Little Brothers	255	(8)
Gotterdammerung	263	(9)
The Last Ambassador	272	(7)
German Reunification	279	(9)
`There Were No Statesmen'	288	(6)
`Let's Call in the Tanks'	294	(20)
Civic Forum	314	(22)
`We Had Imposed Ourselves'	336	(26)
`A Lack of Political Will'	362	(4)
The Leading Role	366	(11)
Mafias of the World Unite!	377	(10)
`Initiatives'	387	(4)
`Who Is Lying, I Do Not Know'	391	(6)
`Caught in a Trap'	397	(7)
The State Committee and the Coup	404	(10)
`A Friendly Little Chat'	414	(4)
The Speaker	418	(8)
`What Are You Doing Among Them?'	426	(3)
Aftermath	429	(9)
Map of the former Soviet Union and bloc	438	(3)
Index	441