Reasons for Failure of Soviet Military to Defend the USSR in 1991

Preparation for war and the military played a central role in Soviet society since the late 1920s and influenced its economic, political, ideological and social development. It is within this context that the Soviet military failed to act against counter-revolution in 1991 and subsequently collapsed. This presentation examines the Soviet military's response to the August 1991 crisis in light of Perestroika (economic restructuring), New Thinking (foreign policy and military doctrine) and the accumulation of unresolved problems within the Soviet armed forces. It indicates how these three dialectically interrelated factors played out, as well as the central role of the military in both initiating Gorbachev's economic restructuring and subverting it.
Lecture-Discussion by Al L. Sargis, Director, Friedrich Engels Institute for Marxist War & Military Analysis