Reform and Collapse, Part 5

Question 1: Briefly describe the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Answer 1: The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is an organization composed of countries in much of what was formerly the Soviet Union. It was formed in late 1991, during the last days of the Soviet Union before its official dissolution on December 26. Unlike the Soviet Union, each state in the CIS maintains its own autonomy, and participation in the CIS is more cooperative than it is authoritative. The CIS states work together to maintain trade, finance, law enforcement, and security in their region of the world.The CIS is currently composed of nine official member countries, one participating non-member country, and an unofficial associate member country. The official countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Ukraine is the participating non-member country, and Turkmenistan is its unofficial associate member country. In addition, Georgia is a former CIS member country, having withdrawn in 2008.

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Question 2: List the nations that gained their independence after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Answer 2: In addition to Russia, which became the foremost nation in Eastern Europe following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, 14 nations gained their independence from the dissolution:ArmeniaAzerbaijanBelarusEstoniaGeorgiaKazakhstanKyrgyzstanLatviaLithuaniaMoldovaTajikistanTurkmenistanUkraineUzbekistan

Question 3: Describe the Special Period.

Answer 3: The Special Period, formally the Special Period in Time of Peace, was an extended economic crisis in Cuba that began after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Heavily reliant on the Soviet Union for almost all of its business, Cuba’s entire economy took a severe blow when the Union ceased to exist. Cuba’s imports and exports both dropped by a staggering 80 percent, and the GDP dropped by 34 percent. The loss of oil and hydrocarbon energy sources Cuba received from the Union created an energy crisis. Food had to be rationed, land had to be developed for farming, and all manner of vehicles were adapted for mass transportation. The country only began to recover from the hardship of losing its invaluable partner by the end of the 1990s. The Special Period stands as proof of just how influential the Soviet Union was in the world. While treated as news and a historic moment by the West and capitalist nations that did not rely on the Soviet Union, Soviet allies like Cuba suffered an enormous setback by the event.

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