Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev dead
Nobel Peace Prize winner and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev died at the age of 91.
Mikhail Gorbachev, the last President of the Soviet Union, is dead.
The 1990 Nobel Peace Prize winner died in Moscow at the age of 91. “Tonight Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev died after a long and serious illness,” said the Central Clinical Hospital (ZKB) in the Russian capital.
As a politician, Gorbachev was valued worldwide. He was considered one of the fathers of German unity and a pioneer for the end of the Cold War. In the 1980s, under Gorbachev’s leadership, the Soviet Union signed groundbreaking treaties on nuclear disarmament and arms control with the United States.
In his home country, Gorbachev, as General Secretary of the Communist Party, initiated an unprecedented reform process with his policy of glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring). In 1990 Gorbachev received the Nobel Peace Prize for his reforms. The political process led to massive upheavals in all republics of the Soviet state and ultimately to the collapse of the communist empire.
At the age of 54 General Secretary of the CPSU
Born in the village of Privolnoje in the Stavropol region, the son of a peasant family studied law in Moscow from 1950 to 1955. In addition, he completed a degree in agricultural engineering. From 1971 he was a member of the Central Committee of the CPSU, from 1980 he was a full member of the Politburo and thus entered the innermost circle of power in Moscow. In 1985, at the age of 54, Gorbachev took over the post at the head of the CPSU as General Secretary; In 1988, after the resignation of Andrei Gromyko (1909-1989), he also became President of the Soviet Union.
While his politics contributed significantly to the end of the so-called Cold War, a large part of the Russian population always saw him as the gravedigger of the Soviet Union. In 1991 he resigned as president before the state dissolved itself a little later. The new strongman in Moscow at the time was Russian President Boris Yeltsin (1931-2007).
Own political foundation in Moscow
Gorbachev wrote numerous books – later also about his disappointment with the Germans and the West. Specifically, he complained that new enemy images were being drawn against Russia. For health reasons, he did not travel to the celebrations marking the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in autumn 2019. He has had to be hospitalized repeatedly over the past few years.
Up until his death he had rendered outstanding services to his own political foundation in Moscow. The organization advocates democratic values and a rapprochement between Russia and the West. Gorbachev was also a co-owner of the newspaper “Novaya Gazeta”, which is critical of the Kremlin and repeatedly exposes abuses in Russia. In recent years, Gorbachev has repeatedly asked Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin not to further restrict the freedom of the media and elections.
The statesman is buried in Moscow at the New Maiden Cemetery for celebrities – next to his wife Raisa.
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Reactions to Gorbachev’s death: “His words made us strong”
The news of the death of former Soviet leader Gorbachev has caused grief around the world. Numerous politicians recognized his contribution to the end of the Cold War. Russian President Putin expressed deep condolences.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his deepest condolences over the death of Mikhail Gorbachev, a spokesman said. Putin will send the family a telegram in the morning, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced. Former Soviet leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Gorbachev died on Tuesday at the age of 91.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres was “deeply saddened” by Gorbachev’s death. Guterres said he was a “unique statesman” who changed the course of history. “He did more than anyone else to bring the Cold War to a peaceful end.” The 73-year-old Portuguese expressed his condolences to the family of Gorbachev and the people of Russia.
US President Joe Biden praised Gorbachev as a “man with a remarkable vision”. After decades of brutal political repression, he advocated democratic reforms in the Soviet Union. “These were the actions of an extraordinary leader – one who had the imagination to see a different future possible and the courage to risk her entire career to achieve it. The result was a safer world and greater freedom for Millions of people,” Biden said.
“A role model for all of us”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson paid tribute to Gorbachev’s historical legacy. “I have always admired the courage and integrity he showed in bringing the Cold War to a peaceful end,” Johnson wrote on Twitter. He also confronted Gorbachev with Putin. “At a time of Putin’s aggression in Ukraine, his relentless commitment to opening up Soviet society remains an example for all of us,” Johnson wrote.
French President Emmanuel Macron called Gorbachev a “man of peace”. Macron wrote on Twitter that his decision opened “a path to freedom” for the Russians. “His commitment to peace in Europe has changed our common history.”
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasized the importance of Gorbachev for Europe. “He played a crucial role in ending the Cold War and the fall of the Iron Curtain,” von der Leyen wrote on Twitter. She described Gorbachev as a leader who was reliable and respected. “He paved the way for a free Europe. We will never forget this legacy.”
“A brave man of conviction”
Several federal politicians also paid tribute to the Russian Nobel Peace Prize winner shortly after his death became known. Without Gorbachev, “the peaceful revolutions in the countries of the Eastern Bloc would not have been conceivable here,” wrote Bundestag Vice President and Green politician Katrin Göring-Eckardt on Twitter. “His words have encouraged us, made me strong.”
Germany owes a lot to Gorbachev, Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) also wrote on Twitter. “He ushered in the end of the Cold War, enabled Germany’s reunification and gave his country a democratic momentum. A brave man of conviction whose voice will be missed.”
