War is very hard on citizens everywhere. The Cold War induced many changes on the citizens of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. These changes often resulted in challenges for the people to over come.
Many of the Eastern European states wanted independence from the Soviet Union. The revolutions that followed affected many of the people. In Poland after the revolution, citizens faced severe unemployment. The economy improved and is still working to become better.
A map of Poland
Romania faced many problems. Economic policies led to a drop in living standards. Food shortages caused rationing. Thousands of people were even murdered when they were peacefully demonstration. The army refused to support their Communist leader and a new government was quickly formed.
There were many food shortages in Romania that caused the rationing of food
When the Soviet Union was beginning to disband, many army and government officials arrested Mikhail Gorbachev, the Russia president. Thousands of Russians bravely fought the rebels in Moscow. The attempt was successful and Gorbachev was freed.
Gorbachev was arrested in a failed attempt to sieve power and keep the Soviet Union together
Boris Yeltsin was committed to introducing a free market economy as quickly as possible, but the transition was not easy. Economic hardships and social disarray were made worse by a dramatic rise in organized crime. After Yeltsin resigned, Vladimir Putin replaced him. He put many economic reforms in place that greatly improved the economic state and as a result the social problems.
The citizens of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union went through many changes, often very quickly. This led to many struggles, along with some positive developments.
When Mikhail Gorbachev was elected the first president of the Soviet Union, he made many changes to the Soviet Union's government. Gorbachev made an agreement with the United States to eliminate intermediate-range nuclear weapons. This took a lot of tension from the minds of citizens across the world. Gorbachev wanted to cut back on the military budget and focus on social and economic change.
Reagan and Gorbachev signing the INF-Treaty, which would eliminate intermediate-range nuclear weapons.
Another social change would be after Gorbachev resigned. His successor, Boris Yeltsin, tried to introduce a free market economy, but the transition was not easy. Economic hardships and social disarray were made worse by a dramatic rise in organized crime. After Yeltsin resigned, Vladimir Putin came power. He introduced many economic reforms, which helped grow Russia's economy and they have now even experienced a budget surplus. With the economy up, citizens can expect better pay and over all better conditions in their country.