HISTORICAL FACTS: 4 | History Defined

How Gorbachev's 'perestroika' resonated on the African continent

The late Mikhail Gorbachev is praised in the West for helping to end the Cold War and a bipolar world in which Soviet-allied African countries found themselves at the mercy of strategic struggles between Washington and Moscow. Released from the 'bear-hug', some states faired better than others.

Radio France Internationale · Aug 31, 2022

‘It took me decades to realise what Gorbachev gave me’

Mansur Mirovalev reflects on the Soviet leader, who has died at 91.

Al Jazeera · Aug 31, 2022

Mikhail Gorbachev: The contradictory legacy of Soviet leader who attempted 'revolution from above'

Mikhail Gorbachev was a contradictory figure; his legacy, complex. Hailed in the West as a democrat and liberator of his people – which he genuinely was – he increasingly became despised by many within Russia for destroying the Soviet Union and dismantling a great power.

The Conversation · Aug 31, 2022

‘A true man of peace’: what the papers say about the death of Mikhail Gorbachev

Newspapers in the UK and Europe hail the final Soviet leader, noting his role in ending the cold war and his attempts to reform the USSR

The Guardian - AU · Aug 31, 2022

Mikhail Gorbachev: The rise and fall of the last Soviet leader

Mikhail Gorbachev, who has died aged 91, was revered in West but criticised by many Russians for overseeing end of USSR.

Al Jazeera · Aug 30, 2022

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev dies

He oversaw bold reforms and later the collapse of the USSR.

Axios · Aug 30, 2022

Watch as Latvia topples Soviet-era monument which paid tribute to the Red Army

The monument was built in 1985 when Latvia was part of the USSR

Evening Standard · Aug 26, 2022

‘They would have preferred hell’: The Battle of Stalingrad, 80 years on

The Second World War’s deadliest battle – and one of the most brutal of all time – started on August 23, 1942, when Adolf Hitler’s forces went all out to seize the city bearing Joseph Stalin’s name. If ever a battle was like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object,…

France 24 · Aug 23, 2022

Ukrainian people are resisting the centuries-old force of Russian imperialism - Ukraine war at 6 months

The war being waged by Russia in Ukraine has been described in many ways – an attempt to recreate the USSR, a militant attempt to create a new Eurasia civilization, or a proxy war between Russia and the West. But whatever Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ambitions and aspirations were in…

The Conversation · Aug 18, 2022

Russia’s threats to shut down Jewish Agency raise alarm bells for those who remember the past

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sparked a surge of refugees fleeing the war zone, but political repression and economic uncertainty have also prompted emigration from Russia itself. Among the emigrants are Russian Jews, 16,000 of whom have left for Israel in the nearly six months since the war’s…

The Conversation · Aug 11, 2022