1. Economic problems

By the 1980s, the economy of the Soviet Union began to slow down significantly. The planned system that worked in the industrial era could no longer cope with modern challenges. The country lacked essential goods, store shelves were empty, and innovations were almost non-existent. At the same time, huge funds were spent on the arms race and supporting socialist regimes in other countries.

2. National contradictions

The USSR consisted of 15 union republics, each of which had its own characteristics, language, culture and ambitions. Internal conflicts, a sense of injustice, and a desire for independence grew stronger, especially in the Baltics, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. As the central government began to weaken, the republics began to demand sovereignty.

3. Gorbachev's political reforms

Mikhail Gorbachev, who came to power in 1985, launched reforms called "perestroika" and "glasnost." His goal was to improve the system, but the result was the opposite: the people began to openly talk about problems, criticize the government, demand changes, and the economy only worsened. Control weakened, but stability did not come.

4. The August putsch and the loss of trust

In August 1991, a group of communist leaders tried to overthrow Gorbachev and restore the old system. This only accelerated the collapse: the population perceived the putsch as evidence that the system had completely decomposed. After the failure of the coup, the republics began to rapidly leave the USSR.

5. Signing of the Belovezh Accords

On December 8, 1991, the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus signed the Belovezh Accords, officially declaring the end of the USSR. Later, other republics joined them, and in December 1991, the Union finally ceased to exist.

Result
The collapse of the USSR was caused by a combination of internal and external factors: an economic crisis, interethnic contradictions, an outdated political system, and unsuccessful reforms. It was a complex, painful process, the consequences of which still affect the lives of the post-Soviet countries.