No one, not even Mikhail Gorbachev, anticipated what was in store when the Soviet Union embarked in the 1980s on a radical course of long-overdue structural reform. The consequences of that momentous decision, which set in motion a transformation eventually affecting the entire postwar world order, are here chronicled from inside a previously forbidden Soviet city, Magnitogorsk. Built under Stalin and championed by him as a showcase of socialism, the city remained closed to Western scrutiny until four years ago, when Stephen Kotkin became the first American to live there in nearly half a...

Is there a sharp dividing line that separates Europe into 'East' and 'West'? This volume brings together prominent scholars from the United States, Canada, France, Poland, and Russia to examine the evolution of the concept of Europe in the two centuries between the French Revolution and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Inspired by the ideas of Martin Malia, the contributors take a flexible view of the 'cultural gradient'--the emergence, interaction, and reception of ideas across Europe. The essays address three dimensions of the gradient--the history of ideas, regimes and political...

The remote vastness of Mongolia has remained somewhat of a mystery to most Westerners - no less so in the 20th century. Homeland of the legendary conqueror Chingiz Khan, in modern times Mongolia itself has been the object of imperial rivalry. For most of the 20th century it was under Soviet domination. Mikhail Gorbachev began the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Mongolia in 1989, a process completed in 1992. By 1996 a coalition of opposition parties triumphed in national elections, and Mongolia launched itself on a new course. It is perhaps the most intriguing of the post-community...

The remote vastness of Mongolia has remained somewhat of a mystery to most Westerners - no less so in the 20th century. Homeland of the legendary conqueror Chingiz Khan, in modern times Mongolia itself has been the object of imperial rivalry. For most of the 20th century it was under Soviet domination. Mikhail Gorbachev began the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Mongolia in 1989, a process completed in 1992. By 1996 a coalition of opposition parties triumphed in national elections, and Mongolia launched itself on a new course. It is perhaps the most intriguing of the post-community...

The common images of Korea view the peninsula as a long-standing battleground for outside powers and the Cold War's last divided state. But, Korea's location at the very center of Northeast Asia gives it a pivotal role in the economic integration of the region and the dynamic development of its more powerful neighbors. A great wave of economic expansion, driven first by the Japanese miracle and then by the ascent of China, has made South Korea - an economic powerhouse in its own right - the hub of the region once again, a natural corridor for railroads and energy pipelines linking Asiatic...

This work presents a trans-Siberian expedition to rediscover the peoples, cultures and riches of Russia's eastern frontiers. It addresses such questions as: who are the people of the region?; have they a distinct culture?; and does the area have a future as part of the Pacific Rim?

This work presents a trans-Siberian expedition to rediscover the peoples, cultures and riches of Russia's eastern frontiers. It addresses such questions as: who are the people of the region?; have they a distinct culture?; and does the area have a future as part of the Pacific Rim?

Featuring extensive revisions to the text as well as a new introduction and epilogue--bringing the book completely up to date on the tumultuous politics of the previous decade and the long-term implications of the Soviet collapse--this compact, original, and engaging book offers the definitive account of one of the great historical events of the last fifty years.
Combining historical and geopolitical analysis with an absorbing narrative, Kotkin draws upon extensive research, including memoirs by dozens of insiders and senior figures, to illuminate the factors that led to the demise of...

Twenty years ago, the Berlin Wall fell. In one of modern history's most miraculous occurrences, communism imploded-and not with a bang, but with a whimper. Now two of the foremost scholars of East European and Soviet affairs, Stephen Kotkin and Jan T. Gross, drawing upon two decades of reflection, revisit this crash. In a crisp, concise, unsentimental narrative, they employ three case studies-East Germany, Romania, and Poland-to illuminate what led Communist regimes to surrender, or to be swept away in political bank runs. This is less a story of dissidents, so-called civil society, than of...