The Final 24 Hours of the Soviet Union

The Final 24 Hours of the Soviet Union

At 7:32 p.m. on December 25, 1991, the Soviet red flag that had flown over the Kremlin in Moscow for 74 years was slowly lowered. Minutes later, the Russian tricolor was raised. It is one of the most symbolic images in world history. That evening Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev announced his resignation on television. The next day, December 26, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR passed a resolution formally dissolving the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. A socialist empire that had once held 290 million people, spanned 22 million square kilometers, and stood beside the United States as one of the two superpowers, simply ceased to exist.

The process of Soviet dissolution was extremely complex, but the final 24 hours played out with cinematic intensity. From a final phone call between Gorbachev and Yeltsin on the morning of December 25, 1991, to the lowering of the red flag that evening, to the Supreme Soviet resolution the next day, the 24 hours were full of dramatic detail. It was one of the greatest political events of the 20th century and the real starting point of today's world order. Let us look back at these decisive 24 hours.

Gorbachev's Six Years of Reform

Gorbachev took over as General Secretary of the Communist Party in March 1985 at the age of 54. The Soviet Union he inherited was a vast but ossified system. The economy was stagnant. Military spending exceeded 15% of GDP. The country depended on imported grain. Technology lagged far behind the United States. Gorbachev decided to launch reform, with the two core policies of glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring). Glasnost meant easing controls on speech, allowing the media to criticize the government. Perestroika meant economic and political restructuring.

But Gorbachev's reforms moved beyond his control. Glasnost unleashed long-suppressed nationalisms and liberal currents. One after another the Eastern European countries broke free of Soviet control. In 1989 the Berlin Wall fell and Eastern Europe was transformed. The three Baltic states, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia, declared independence. Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and other Soviet republics began moving in the same direction. From 1989 on, the USSR was on a countdown to dissolution. Gorbachev tried to preserve it through a new Union Treaty, but he could no longer stop the wave of independence.

The August 1991 Coup

On August 19, 1991, hardliners in the Communist Party, including Vice President Yanayev, launched a coup, placing Gorbachev under house arrest and declaring a state of emergency. They were trying to stop Gorbachev from signing the imminent new Union Treaty. But the coup collapsed in three days. Russian President Boris Yeltsin stood on a tank in front of the White House calling on the public to resist, winning huge popular support. On August 21 the coup plotters were arrested and Gorbachev was released and returned to Moscow.

But by the time he returned the situation had changed completely. Yeltsin had become a national hero for defying the coup, and his political prestige far exceeded Gorbachev's. In late August Yeltsin ordered the Russian Republic to take over all Soviet assets and institutions on Russian soil. In September the three Baltic states' independence was internationally recognized. In October Ukraine declared independence. The Soviet Union was effectively breaking apart, and Gorbachev was president in name only. From September to December Gorbachev tried repeatedly to negotiate some form of union, but every attempt failed.

The Belavezha Accords

On December 8, 1991, Yeltsin, Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk, and Belarusian leader Stanislav Shushkevich met secretly in the Belavezha Forest of Belarus. The three leaders, representing the three main Slavic republics of the USSR, signed the Belavezha Accords, declaring that the Soviet Union as a subject of international law no longer existed and forming the Commonwealth of Independent States in its place. Gorbachev was not part of the meeting; the Soviet Union was being dissolved from within.

Gorbachev learned of the agreement from US President George H. W. Bush and was nearly broken by the rage. He called Yeltsin to demand why he had not been informed. Yeltsin replied that this was a matter for Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus and did not require Soviet central approval. Gorbachev realized that his authority as Soviet president was utterly gone. On December 12 the Russian Supreme Soviet ratified the accords. On December 21, at the Almaty meeting in Kazakhstan, the leaders of 11 former Soviet republics signed the CIS agreement, formally declaring that the Soviet Union had ceased to exist. Gorbachev's resignation was now only a formality.

The Start of the Last 24 Hours

At 7 a.m. on December 25, 1991, in Moscow, the first thing Gorbachev did after rising was call George H. W. Bush. The two leaders had developed a personal friendship over the previous six years. Gorbachev told Bush that he would announce his resignation on television that day. Bush listened for a long time in silence and finally said he would do everything he could to help Gorbachev and Russia through the transition. The call was one of the most important symbols of the Cold War's end.

At 10 a.m. Gorbachev met Yeltsin for the last time in his Kremlin office. They discussed the specifics of the handover. Yeltsin demanded that Gorbachev vacate the presidential office in the Kremlin immediately and hand over the nuclear weapons codes. Gorbachev asked for a few days to organize his personal belongings. The two argued for a long time. Yeltsin eventually agreed to give Gorbachev a few days but insisted the nuclear codes had to change hands that very day. Gorbachev accepted. The meeting was cold, reflecting many years of political rivalry between the two men.

The Television Address

At 7 p.m. Gorbachev sat down in a plain office in the Kremlin to address the country live on television. He wore a dark suit, with a prepared speech in front of him. The address began at 7 p.m. and lasted 14 minutes. Gorbachev said, "Dear compatriots, given the situation that has arisen with the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States, I hereby resign from the office of President of the USSR." The sentence marked the de facto end of the Soviet Union.

In the address he reflected on the achievements and failures of his six years of reform. He said the reforms he had launched had made the country something different. The Cold War had ended, the arms race had stopped, and democracy and a market economy had entered the Soviet Union. But he also admitted that the USSR had not completed its transformation. He said he was leaving so the country could continue along the path of democracy. Finally he wished his successor and all Soviet citizens well. Outwardly Gorbachev remained composed for 14 minutes, but he later admitted it was the most painful moment of his life.

The Moment the Flag Came Down

The address ended at 7:14 p.m. Minutes later the Soviet red flag was lowered above the Kremlin. It is one of the most symbolic moments in world history. Many reporters outside the Kremlin captured the scene. After the red flag came down, the Russian tricolor went up. From the founding of the USSR in 1922 to its dissolution in 1991, the red flag had flown for 69 years. It had witnessed victory in World War II, the first human spaceflight, the rise of a superpower, and ultimately the dissolution.

When the flag came down Gorbachev had already left the Kremlin and did not see it with his own eyes. Several of his advisers remained outside watching. One adviser later said he wept when he saw it. Many older Soviet citizens watching on television also cried. But many younger people felt it was the beginning of a new era and looked forward to the future. The generational difference reflects the complex meaning of Soviet dissolution.

The Handover of the Nuclear Codes

A few minutes before the flag came down, another extremely important event took place. Gorbachev handed the nuclear briefcase, the symbol of control over the Soviet nuclear arsenal, to Soviet Defense Minister Yevgeny Shaposhnikov. Shaposhnikov immediately passed it to Yeltsin. This simple physical exchange transferred control of the largest nuclear arsenal in the world. Russia became the legal successor to the Soviet nuclear arsenal.

The handover was vital because the Soviet arsenal totaled more than 30,000 warheads. If control had slipped during the dissolution, a global nuclear catastrophe could have resulted. Although Gorbachev and Yeltsin were political rivals, both recognized that the handover of nuclear weapons had to be smooth. The decision averted the greatest potential danger of Soviet dissolution. The US and Russia later worked together through the Nunn-Lugar Act to handle Soviet nuclear weapons outside Russia, returning the warheads in Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan to Russia to be dismantled.

The Next Day's Resolution

On the morning of December 26 the Supreme Soviet of the USSR held its final session. The session passed a resolution formally declaring the Soviet Union dissolved. Only a few dozen deputies from the Council of Republics attended; many had returned to their own republics and were no longer participating in Soviet sessions. The resolution was passed quickly, in under an hour. It was the legal end of the Soviet Union.

After the resolution the session was dissolved, and the Supreme Soviet of the USSR ceased to exist. Soviet central institutions were closed or transferred to Russia over the months that followed. Most of the Soviet army was inherited by Russia, with smaller portions allocated to the various republics. Soviet embassies abroad were taken over by Russia, which became the USSR's sole legal successor in international law. From December 26, 1991, the Soviet Union disappeared from the face of the earth and the world entered the post-Cold War era.

Reflections on the Fall of the USSR

More than 30 years on, opinions of Soviet dissolution remain divided. Many Russians see it as a geopolitical catastrophe that stripped Russia of great-power status. Many in the former republics see it as national liberation that brought them independence. Many in the West see it as the victory of democracy over totalitarianism. These differences reflect the many faces of the event.

But several facts are agreed. First, Soviet dissolution formally ended the Cold War and turned the world from bipolar to unipolar. Second, it triggered democratic transitions in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet states, although these transitions were extremely painful and many countries went through wrenching economic decline and social upheaval. Third, it left the United States as the only superpower, although Washington did not lead the world as many had expected, instead engaging in repeated misguided interventions over the past 30 years. From this angle, Soviet dissolution was not just the story of one country but a pivot point for the world order. Its influence still shapes the lives of every person today.

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