Audio Books →The Last Empire The Final Days of the Soviet Union [Audiobook]

On the contrary, American leaders dreaded the possibility that the Soviet Union might suddenly crumble, throwing all of Eurasia into chaos. Bush was firmly committed to supporting his ally Gorbachev and remained wary of radical leaders such as recently elected Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Fearing what might happen to the large Soviet nuclear arsenal in the event of the union's collapse, Bush stood by Gorbachev as he resisted the growing independence movements in Ukraine, Moldova, and the Caucasus. Plokhy shows that it was only after the movement for independence of the republics had gained undeniable momentum on the eve of the Ukrainian vote for independence that Bush finally abandoned Gorbachev to his fate.