The Conflict

Economic and political conflict led to increasing tension within the Soviet Union (USSR) in the late 1980s. Economic stagnation led to frustration with the centrally managed system. Political pressure to end (or win) the war in Afghanistan led to military frustration with the political regime. In addition, the member countries of the Soviet Union, including the Balkans, the Soviet bloc, and Chechnya and Georgia experienced a resurgence of nationalism. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev tried to engineer a gradual liberalization of the country. While this was initially successful, Soviet citizens ultimately rebelled, and the Soviet Union was broken into many smaller countries, many of which experienced internal ethnic/national conflict.

Territorial

• The Soviet Union believed it had sovereignty over the member countries of the Soviet...