1. The reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union
1. External: the defeat of the Soviet Union in the Cold War, opponents of
subversive activities in the international arena, the weakness of the Allies (east
block).
2. Inside: the weakness of the political regime; disturbing influence of
Khrushchev and Brezhnev's reforms increase social, national and economic
problems.
3. The collapse of the USSR - the result of the struggle of political elites for
national and regional level for political influence.
None of these reasons is not the key, the issue is systemic.
It is important to perceive the collapse of the State as a particular process
that has no event-driven nature.
Components of the process: national problems, especially acute for the
Caucasus, the Baltic countries, internal conflicts, languished in an undemocratic
society.
The conflict was of long latency component of the character, appearances
were implicit in nature: kitchen conversations fartsovka as a manifestation of the
shadow economy, the creation of dissidents picture perfect society of market
economy on the example of U.S. and Western Europe.
Political problems:
- unfinished reforms of Khrushchev and Brezhnev shook the foundations of
the political regime and created a different political framework;
There was some regionalization of political power: the leaders of regions
and republics have additional powers, significantly increased the authority of
regional and national political leaders. They subsequently become mouthpieces of
the political ideas of the Soviet collapse.
- Instability of the external political environment: the aggravation of
relations with the leadership of the Eastern bloc, the war in Afghanistan.
Economic problems:

2. - the militarization of the economy, the uneven distribution of MIC among
the Soviet republics;
- completion of an energy crisis, reducing the impact of energy exports;
- Shortage economy, the problem of providing consumer goods in a society
of consumer orientation;
- forming the black market at the level of state-owned enterprises and private
entrepreneurship;
- imbalances in the economic mechanism, caused by inefficient state
planning.
Politico-ideological reasons:
- forming layers the party-state nomenclature, received certain powers in
terms of regionalization of governance and the hardships of micromanagement
center;
- The weakening of the influence of state ideology, the subversive activities
of the dissident movement, which creates prerequisites for the formation of an
alternative ideology;
- Growth of the national problems caused by the emergence of new national
elites: Gamsahudia, Landsbergis, etc. These political forces were the most
cohesive, defending the most simple and clear to all objective.
It is not surprising that national political forces before any organization
decided, the ideological platform was faster than anyone else developed. In this
case, the basic requirements were destructive in nature: if a complete collapse is
impossible, should significantly change the scope of the union agreement.
Another feature of the movement - a complete failure to address the
economic feasibility of national reform.
Restucturing processes:
Stage 1: an attempt of economic reform without political modernization: the
acceleration of socio-economic development, public acceptance as a way to
improve product quality, the struggle with alcoholism (a kind of Prohibition) to
improve labor discipline.

3. Stage 2: the assumption of private property, encouraging private initiative,
the advantage of the collective, cooperative ownership over private, the beginning
of political reform: critique of Stalinism, openness and new political thinking.
Step 3: catching up political change: the political multiparty, competitive
elections, changing the political system (the introduction of the post of president of
the USSR, the Congress of Soviets as an alternative political body), development
of a new union treaty.
Aggravation of national issues: the political conflict in Kazakhstan,
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the national speech
in Georgia, the Baltic republics attempts to revise the outcome of the Second
World War, the parade of sovereignties (adoption of the Declaration on State
Sovereignty of the Soviet republics).
Attempts to solve national problems: the armed suppression of national
appearances in Georgia and Azerbaijan, the beginning of the development of a new
union contract, holding in the national republics of the referendum March 17, 1991
about the possibility of preservation of the USSR, Meeting in New Ogarevo and
the completion of a new treaty of alliance, the August coup as an attempt by force
to stop the decay process of statehood.