Mikhail Gorbachev

Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov (Gorbachev) {{Audio|ru-Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev.ogg|listen}} ({{lang-ru|??????? ?????????? ????????}}; pronunciation: {{IPA|/mixaˈɪɫ serˈgejevɪtʃ g?rbaˈtʃof/}}) (born March 2, 1931), was leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991. His attempts at reform led to the end of the Cold War, but also caused the end of the political supremacy of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Further reading

• Mikhail Gorbachev, Perestroika: New Thinking for Our Country and the World, Perennial Library, Harper & Row, 1988, ISBN 0-06-091528-5
• Mikhail Gorbachev, Memoirs, Doubleday, 1996, ISBN 0-38-548019-9
• Archie Brown, The Gorbachev Factor, Oxford University Press, 1997, ISBN 0-19-288052-7