Newshub18:The last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, is no more.
Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, has died at the age of 91. He will be remembered for his role in ending the Cold War peacefully. World leaders including UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres mourned his death. News from BBC and Al-Jazeera.
“Gorbachev died this evening after suffering from a serious and long-term illness,” Interfax, TASS and RIA Novosti news agencies said late Tuesday, citing Moscow’s Central Clinical Hospital.
Gorbachev’s health had been deteriorating over the past few years. He was in and out of the hospital. Last June, he was admitted to the hospital with kidney disease, according to international media. However, nothing has been said about the cause of his death till now.
Gorbachev took power of the Soviet Union in 1985 at the age of 54. He was the youngest member of the Politburo of the Communist Party when he took office. Gorbachev opened the Soviet Union to the world and undertook some internal reforms.
But ultimately he failed to prevent the collapse of the Soviet Union. The journey of today’s Russia began with the breakup of the Soviet Union.
World leaders mourned the death of the last Soviet leader. UN Secretary General says Gorbachev ‘changed the course of history’. Russian President Vladimir Putin also expressed deep grief over Gorbachev’s death.
In the Western world, this Soviet leader is seen as the architect of reforms. He played a role in ending the Cold War in 1991 with the Western world including the United States and Britain. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for his leading role in bringing about sweeping changes in East-West relations.
However, many Russians will never forgive Gorbachev for the instability created after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Vladimir Rogov, an official stationed in the Soviet Union’s Ukraine at the time, said that Gorbachev “deliberately brought about the dissolution of the Soviet Union”. This officer also commented that he is a traitor