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Mikhail Gorbachev has died

(www.reuters.com)
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lapcat ◴[] No.32655071[source]
The United States didn't do enough to help Russia transition to democracy in the 1990s. There was no "Marshall Plan" after the Cold War like there was after World War II. This was a huge mistake, and we see the consequences now, with Russia having turned back toward totalitarianism and imperialism. Sadly, it seems that Gorbachev's efforts were mostly for naught. But it was courageous at the time to open up the Soviet Union to glasnost and perestroika.

Of course Yeltsin was a big part of the problem too.

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1. spaetzleesser ◴[] No.32655379[source]
A "Marshall Plan" for Russia would have worked as well as the "Marshall Plan" for Afghanistan has worked over the last 20 years. You can't impose your system on people who don't want it. Do you think Russia would have handed control over to Westerners? And without control it's just an endless money sink. The oligarchs would just have become a little richer.
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2. avmich ◴[] No.32656225[source]
Just to be certain, I'm sure the last 20 years put a long-lasting effect on Afghan people, won't be erased soon. We even see some effects in modern Iraq, where the period was shorter.
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3. spaetzleesser ◴[] No.32657640[source]
That effect is still in question. And the price tag was enormous.
4. lapcat ◴[] No.32657956[source]
I wasn't suggesting imposing a system on Russia or taking control, any more than the US imposed a system or took control of the UK after WW2.

"The largest recipient of Marshall Plan money was the United Kingdom (receiving about 26% of the total). The next highest contributions went to France (18%)" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_Plan

Moreover, Russia clearly did want and in fact received some economic aid under Yelstin.