in the soviet union. the war in afghanistan the gorbachev had inherited it was now in its tenth year. it was very costly and weighed heavily on the soviet economy. above all it ate away at more out. of the soviet army had one hundred fifteen thousand soldiers in afghanistan. more than fifteen thousand officers and soldiers from all the republics of the soviet union lost their lives there and over fifty thousand were wounded. countless others were left traumatized by the fighting. in one nine hundred eighty nine gorbachev ended the war when the troops returned to their homeland they were cheered out of relief not because they were victors. moscow's empire now had its own vietnam. a stalemate the high price in soldiers' money and prestige help to play a role in the soviet union's collapse. glasnost the second pillar of gorbachev's reforms means transparency now people could talk about the open wounds of soviet history the victims of stalinism the low morale in the army the soviet system of values was falteri

if they're to expand the soviet union that. that's the territory of the soviet union. listed that it's already as the site. in one nine hundred forty a non-aggression pact signed with nazi germany the year before gave stealin a green light to panix the baltic states. having expunged the last nine soviet stane in the north style and now controlled the baltic coast with the annexation of estonia latvia and lithuania the soviet union was now the largest it would ever be fifteen soviet republics united by a core culture laid down by moscow the official language was russian from moscow to minsk from vilnius to kiev. could you when. slowly the crimean language disappeared many people found out very painful everything was done to make us feel like a single perfect torrijos entity. with a conviction and we worst soviet man said. from day stitches in the we were proud to belong to the greatest uli the strongest of people to this undefeated country the name of anybody jianli a star in the end. the german attack on the soviet union led to a victory for the empire that gave it a w

the soviet union they had come from was disintegrating . on august thirty first one thousand nine hundred four the soviet troop withdrawal was complete. germany paid about fifteen billion dollars marks to cover its cost but the price that moscow paid was far greater. until then the heroic soviet army had been seen as a symbol of the empires power and grander. it would soon learn that emotionally it was seen as a defeat. you know really i'm telling you a defeat not only did i understand it that way but also the bulk of the population did was just for. the empire wasn't only disintegrating at its edges it was also tearing itself apart internally mikhail gorbachev had wanted to give the republics more autonomy. in the summer of one thousand nine hundred one orthodox communists including the soviet union's own minister of defense mounted a coup against gorbachev surrounding the russian parliament with tanks. citizens turned down to stop them. the coup plotters held gorbachev captive for three days and his holiday home in crimea the country was d

so you swim in the soviet union as only temporarily cease to exist if you've got the current russian flag won't be flying much longer red communist flags will wave again but the organizers that. reaction and his friends have no time for the waving red flags of communism. they see the u.s.s.r. as a state that oppressed the people just as the putin led government does now. nonetheless they see their home city of st petersburg as a source of inspiration and they dream of a true democracy in russia. and i thought when i look out over my city it is clear to me that talented people live here who can build such beautiful cities with people who can make their lives better. so the hopes of the past do live on in today's russia now the anniversary of the revolution is definitely not a cause for celebration everywhere after the soviets occupied lithuania latvia under. the second world war starlin had hundreds of thousands of people deported to siberia it proved a death sentence for many such as members of di norris family she was deported to siberia from the few as a small girl and still today

the international relations level what the soviet union meant to the world it meant the end of western colonialism and imperialism without the soviet union the ability of the third world to achieve independence certainly within the time frame it did it simply wouldn't have been work you could make the same argument to the end of the first world war saw the end of the western empires the russian the end. the seeds of it eventually decades later we just had the collapse of the russian empire one cannot say that that was necessarily part of the same process that when they were in the eighty's nelson mandela who was supported by the soviet union and himself was a communist of sorts was still opposed by western governments the united states the united kingdom up until he succeeded and then suddenly he's become you know the hero rather that's the whole point that's the whole point it's not just about the soviet union it's about ideology and that is the biggest outcome of that political transformation you can use revolution you can use who data whatever you choose but the fact of the matter i

for myakshin, the soviet union and its heroes belong in the past.mitry: i'm not a fan of the communist revolution. the only parallel you can draw is the idea of popular rebellion. of course i'm a little fearful, but i try not to think about that. we have to be courageous. that's the only way we'll achieve our goals. reporter: according to surveys, almost half of russia's young people agree with myakshin and don't regret the breakdown of the soviet union. but not everyone shares that view. young communists staged a celebration in st. petersburg to mark the anniversary of the revolution. they, too, gather on a cold october evening to make political demands. they, too, want political change at the top. using soviet symbols, they pay tribute to a period of history they themselves never experienced. >> based on the stories of our grandparents, i know things were better in the soviet union. people were kinder to one another. life was better back then in every way. >> although our country has taken a giant step backwards, i'm certain that socialism will tr

the soviet union and its heroes belong in the past. not a fan of the communist revolution. you can draw is the idea of popular rebellion. of course i'm a little fearful but i try not to think about that. we have to be courageous that's the only way we'll achieve our goals. according to surveys almost half of russia's young people agree with me and don't regret the breakdown of the soviet union but not everyone shares that view young communist staged a celebration in st petersburg to mark the anniversary of the revolution they to gather on a cold october evening to make political demands they too want political change at the top. using soviet symbols they paid tribute to a period of history they themselves never experienced. based on the stories of our grandparents i know things are better in the soviet union people were kinder to one another life was better back then in every way. although our country has taken a giant step backwards i'm certain that socialism will triumph in the end and that it is our country's only future. so you saw him in the soviet union has only tempo

we have to remember that the soviet union was was born not only in internal struggle but it was from the moment of its creation it was attacked. under siege it wasn't this is left out of a lot of western history books that in one thousand nine hundred eighteen the western powers and in japan. most european countries the united states they invaded the nost and soviet union in the middle of the civil war to try to strangle the village in the cradle in a primitive and i mean we're talking one little incident that you know just in the past few years been recognized by the british press the weapons on russian pounds attacks from outside help solidify the support of the russian people with the threats with the reds the bold is still forward terrence i want to if he was never just the father of some power in the pursuit of utopia and it's really important to understand you know the radical utopian of the revolution the saudi approach and. say that was a dangerous goal to have utopia so i think that that's one of the. lessons of course. you know idealism is not practical politics revolutions

the russian military is first international deployment since the disintegration of the soviet union revealed the cracks beneath the surface. the former pillar of the soviet empire had been neglected for decades after the war in the caucasus president dmitri medvedev announced a long overdue modernization of the russian armed forces. when you more. with the. whole of the us doing the right she's good she gets you get good at them but no no. i mean that she's gifted you know it's going to ship them and that we don't expect a war like this after twenty twenty five on the assumption that a major world crisis would break out resources would become scarce and people in the most widely differing countries would be starving russia is so vast and so rich in resources that we face attacks from all sides we must be prepared. to get them over the meaning that. when putin became president russia's military budget was just four billion dollars. by two thousand and eleven it had climbed to seventy two billion. the global financial crisis in two thousand and eight put a stop to russia's recovery oil and gas

revolution the first of the so-called color revolutions and its successor states of the former soviet union was a sign of the rebellious this of a new generation. russia watched with concern moscow was still hoping to draw the former soviet republics into its fear of influence rather than losing them to the west. grows hope left ukraine divided eastern ukraine is mostly russian or pro russian western ukraine and the capital kiev aspires to western values. as with life we look to europe many of our doctors go there to see how their colleagues there was a musician. but tell your group has been a nurse at a military hospital for twenty five years. ukraine is in the center of europe so we are also a european country we want to live like normal people. russia was actively involved in the polarization of ukraine. in the two thousand and four presidential elections putin gave the pro russian candidate viktor yanukovych his personal support. the brush here the elections were over and then everything turned out to be a big fraud that's why people took to the streets against the dictatorship for huma

so you put him in the soviet union as only temporarily ceased to exist the current russian flag won't be flying much longer red communist flags will wave again but the. reaction and his friends have no time for the waving red flags of communism. they see the u.s.s.r. as a state that oppressed the people just as the protein led government does now but. nonetheless they see their home city of st petersburg as a source of inspiration and they dream of a true democracy in russia. and i thought when i look out over my city it is clear to me that talented people live here who can build such beautiful cities with people who can make their lives better. so the hopes of the past do live on in today's russia. now the anniversary of the revolution is definitely not a cause for celebration everywhere after the soviets occupied lithuania latvia under stone during the second world war starlin had hundreds of thousands of people deported to siberia it proved a death sentence for many such as members of di norris family she was deported to siberia from the few ania as a small girl and still today the

exile in western europe eventually became the leader of the communist state that grew into the soviet union . limits vision of a classless society soon gave way to a totalitarian state. a century ago and what is the legacy of the communist dream moscow correspondent yuri rachet it was that revolution square where a communist rally for the anniversary is take. hi yuri a sea of dress for the occasion how important is this anniversary for twenty first century russians. well it used to be very important today in the past but as there are many reasons terry is this universe three and a grocer makes it very difficult for today's russians sure since all their pollution was a radical upheaval and our people something russians don't want nowadays neither their president was there putin no ordinary citizens want it in this country since ninety seventeen each generation of russians has lived as though it is make up people first of the boss of evolution we are talking about now then a role two or two and finally the collapse of the soviet union so for ordinary people for russians today stability is the

the soviet union russians have become used to political instability and economic misery but now they feared for their lives. in moscow there was terrific fear of the attacks in desperation the government posted a soldier in front of each building. one of these boys said outside my building it was clear that he couldn't protect us from an explosion but it was a desperate attempt to reassure the population. independent journalist under razor dot office been running an investigative website since two thousand. the mood in moscow was dramatically worse and people said that the west had lied to them we had been promised that we would live in prosperity if we followed democratic values learned english and worked according to western rules we did all that and then still ended up in a crisis we could see that the liberal and intelligent atmosphere that had prevailed in the mass media of the ninety's was finished people wanted simple and clear solutions. if someone attacks you you have to fight back people wanted a strong leader. the former great hope was weak and dependent on a small group o

a stalemate the high price in soldiers money and prestige help to play a role in the soviet union's collapse. glasnost the second pillar of gorbachev's reforms means transparency now people could talk about the open wounds of soviet history the victims of stalinism the low morale in the army the soviet system of values was faltering. valentino melnyk over at the mothers of soldiers from all over the country began to organize themselves in ways that was said at the beginning we were dealing with general questions what does conscription mean what rights do you have nobody knew anything and everything was secret so the army units remain silent and the prosecutor's office didn't intervene when there were beatings bullying or suicides. fresh recruits were systematically harassed and abused by the older soldiers. terrible grievances came to light and became common knowledge throughout the republic and the entire eastern bloc. and. the image of the glorious soviet army was more than a little tarnished. a wave of public protests led to investigations yet another pillar of the system began to wobble

the absence of the soviet union is only temporary the russian tricolor won't be for long communist facts will fly again. even though our country has taken a giant step backward i'm sure the triumph of socialism. that's our country's only future. that's exactly what russian revolutionaries thought when they stormed the winter palace in st petersburg one hundred years ago they proclaimed a new world of socialism with their leader vladimir lenin. seventy four years later the soviet union collapsed lennon's personality cult became something of a sinister joke the self-styled leader of the world's working class reduced to a tourist attraction at red square. a hundred years later i say the revolution was wrong. we should have continued to live under the czar life today to be better. than any democracy is. when a country has there should be a revolution. russian officials appear ruffled by the celebrations it's been a long time since parades were held at red square that was back when kremlin leaders addressed the masses from the tribune of the lenin mausoleum. today's kremlin officials are maki

the ninety's looked as if he would resurrect the old style soviet union including its official language. his bella russian is worse than his russian years ago so he needs two official languages i'm sure he's a coarse badly educated dictator if they're going to think that it's a group where mullah brazil ejector. opposition is largely for britain in belarus. in the one nine hundred ninety s. just gave rich to it as a candidate for a new party but he didn't stand a chance. at that time he still hoped to supplant the old values with new ones. it was a vain hope that the. overwhelming majority of people in belarus support democratic principles our leadership only came to power with russia's help. he would the roads there has to be if he does what he wants and everyone else shuts up and accepts it with them if they object he removes them from the fi trough and a fast buck but the west doesn't understand that we're not a state based on law and order and that the way to becoming one has been blocked we're not a country where the government is democratically elected and we were moving towards i

particularly since the soviet union has started to regain its balance. the factories are starting to pump out a lot of kits, and the commanders are starting to emerge. their learning the lessons that they were taught so harshly the previous summer. here it is. this is the image you always have of the nazis on the rise. just look at that. the distance. this just underlies the vast expanse. no asphalt or roads in sight. the task they have given themselves, however much jeopardy there is for soviet leadership, this is too big of an ask for the nazis when they are overstretched because of failings of their italian partner, because of hitler's paranoia about the second flank. we brits are always accused of putting too much emphasis on the mediterranean theater and north africa. the one thing that was obsessed with the mediterranean was hitler. over crete, they lose transport planes. they need us to help out the italian partner. the end of may, they attack the british. the british are not short of badly trained men, they are competent. the issue here 100% is t

the country was soviet union. anybody else who adopts this -- which helped the chinese revolutionaries on the left -- as the army moved into eastern europe [indiscernible] of the allies, they were occupiers. among the people they liquidated in the baltics, in poland, in areas that had been occupied by the germans, were those who were in the resistance against the germans. the polish army was fighting with the british heroically in places like italy and sometimes on the eastern front at times. they liquidated because they made the mistake of being democratic versions of socialists and they were not communists. they used their power to liquidate. i remember being a child and reading about the coup in czechoslovakia. i remember as a freshman at harvard. i think there was only one person in that entire faculty who spoke out against the soviet suppression with tanks of the hungarian revolution. republish october, which was parallel. he did not quite understand the uprising in east germany in 1953, the polish and hungar

you cannot do that in the soviet union, because there is no infrastructure. there are vast tracts of nothingness. the other thing about the union,n of the soviet yes, it is practical and a necessity that makes them do that, but because there are nazi ideologicalalso an idea behind it as well. there were millions of you kenyans who were on the side of no nazis, because they were -- ukrainians who were on the side of the nazis, because they were no friend of stalin. a lot of the people that survived blamed stalin. s,cause the nazis are nazi they treat them brutally and , and whatlages potential he could have been a source of manpower and support quickly turns against them. it is true that a lot of ukrainians did end up fighting, but a lot of them were turned off by the brutality with which the germans rammed through. germans were taught that slavs are inferior beings. this is ideology. this is the racial supremacy we are talking about. they just treated them appallingly. the trouble is already you are getting -- if anything goes wrong, if you don't have that com

we are all witnesses to the fact that the soviet people have been written by a powerful union of physical points. that's why the top soviet officials moved into their new building. >> when they did, most of the men were in their 40s or 50s, most of the women were in their early 30s or most of the children were between the ages of five and 10 and most of the examiners. >> they were young men, women in their early 20s. refugees from grist farms that they matched as recently . now, the apartments younger people elected the family hierarchy. the full extent of every apartment in the largest room was the private space. >>with walls , covered with dark oval bookcases from floor to ceiling, most of the books combinations or the massive gold leather edition of bogus of running encyclopedia. which he said what you see from other tenia publishers and collected works by charles dickens foremost among them. so to conclude. the building was transitional on another sense. and that it was part neoclassical, particularly in part constructivist. and people you did their best to make it less drive. by brin

today'sson asks how is russia's goals different than those of the soviet union? >> it is different because it has no ideology. and the old seekers soviet monopolies. people who are anticapitalist because it is monopoly or big business or industrial complex should go to russia. they should go to china where it is all one big party that administers things. it gets privileges, it has its own hospitals, it's on vacation -- that was party headquarters. of former oligarchs kgb and russian allies, this probably the wealthiest man in russia. resources that were nationalized and he nationalized we combined as theyls run by buddies and get around the laws. -- theke the laws parliament doesn't have hearings. lhe parliament doesn't hea budgets. it is aplanning effort, how tos that decide andl and sell and construct the intelligence operations of the soviet regime have been exceeded by the number and the vladimir putin regime -- in the vladimir putin regime. in the vietnam. there were quite a few groups. some known, some more carefully hidden. that is what i think went to the

he went to moscow university, the elite university of the soviet union from 1950 to 55. and here in my thumbnail sketch that was contributed as most universities do and we've probably all experienced it ourselves they were professors at moscow university. they didn't say entirely what was that their mind. and they have fellow students, two of whom was a student from check who 1968 became the chief ideologist under alexander did checand it turns out he was hist friend during the university years. you learn from reading about him in the memoirs on many occasions that these people are already beginning to be emancipated. the other person he met at moscow university was his wife. unlike a lot of politicians in a lot of countries, he was faithful to her and unlike a lot of politicians he was not only a loving father but a devoted loving husband and father and grandfather to his daughters and granddaughters. i try to talk about the gold his wife played in his life. he claimed he claimed a letter e communist party to beach the pool from 1955 to 1978 when he moved to moscow. the

here, for decades, the soviet union held political dissidents and worked many of them to death. one little island in the vast network known as the gulag. tens of millions of soviet citizens were enslaved in it. the soviet union's rapid industrialisation after the 1917 revolution was due, in part, to forced labour. after the soviet union collapsed, russia's president boris yeltsin buried the bones of the murdered czar nicholas ii. "i bow my head", he said. "we are all guilty and can no longer lie." two decades on, there is no such clarity. the alley of the rulers is a new state sponsored park, in central moscow, josef stalin, who sent millions of the gulag, takes his place in a line, unbroken over 11 centuries, of all powerful leaders. this is autocracy in bronze. is stalin being rehabilitated in russia? we should try to look at our history. more balanced? yes, more balanced. there were crimes. and there were achievements, and there were repression, and there were great victories. that is the truth. in those difficult times, one person can be, on one hand, a hero. on the other han

i mean who could have imagined a coalition that would have the soviet union, china and then the middletates, as well. standing up to one of their own. >> hundreds of demonstrators gathered to protest the inevitable. all but one, that is. >> whenever america goes to war there is going to be protests in the streets. but you needed congressional support or you wouldn't have popular support. >> the world looks to the president. he can play an historic role in leading us to solve this crisis in a nonviolent way. >> make no mistake about it. our vital interests are at stake. >> bush knew that you had to let that process go forward. you couldn't just declare war and do it. >> the hope of peace remains in my heart and the hearts of us all, but this debate is now about war. >> power in a matter of days can bring this villain to his knees. >> let us stop beating the drums of war. let us oppose this march to violence. >> nowhere is it ordained that the new world order must begin with a new world war. >> they had a great national debate and the argument for going to war prevailed. >> president bus

i traveled to the so-called soviet union with some professors and students in the summer of 67 and we almost did not go because there was no crisis in the middle east and relations were not good with the soviets. we went and, of course, the young students did not heed what we were told by the professors -- to be very careful. i went off with some of the girls and we were in kiev and we started meeting these dissiden dissidents. anyway, ended up being in someone's apartment and we ended up the kgb came and knocked on the door and i spent the night being interrogated by myself by the kgb. it all ended happily because it turns out they were more interested in what my father did and what kind of car we had and they were really happy to get my marble cigarettes. i was released the next morning just in time to get my plane out of the soviet union but i never and i was always fascinated with what these people are really like. having met them face to face. i went on and i worked at radio liberty in munich for two years as an editor translator and i went ahead and got my masters and phd at the

you know the hero rather that's the whole point that's the whole point it's not just about the soviet union it's about ideology and that is the biggest of that political transformation you can use revolution you can use whatever you choose but the fact of the matter is the rest of the century or almost the rest of the century was defined by the the ideology that eventually took power in russia there is absolutely no doubt russian revolution played a role in the major role that went the centuries history and most of that the influence was forced to maybe not on russia itself but on the walled in general definitely positive but what i think is important is what i think is not discussed in russia and in the west we see so in the west right now what destruction of morning means more polarization for its american and a friend when they see their actions by the broader world revolution they see the russian role because you are all saying this is very very very costly but we ended up with. just it. was a civil war and the foreign intervention that followed that's what went wrong that's why when th