To what extent were Gorbachev’s policies responsible for improved East-West relations between 1985 and 1991?

The question requires that candidates consider the merits or otherwise of the suggestion that Gorbachev’s policies changed Cold War relations. There may be reference to domestic policies such as Perestroika and Glasnost, but they must be linked to the issue of improved relations. Gorbachev’s New Thinking based his diplomacy on human rights, non-violence, and ending the arms race. Candidates may consider the results of the various summit meetings between 1985 and 1988 leading to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty in Washington in 1987, which came into force in 1988. Candidates may argue that Gorbachev’s willingness to make concessions (accepting the zero–zero option) was vital to improved relations, while other candidates may argue that Reagan’s receptiveness to improved relations was also important, despite the fact that he caused some difficulties in refusing to abandon Star Wars. In 1989, Gorbachev abandoned the Brezhnev Doctrine and withdrew Soviet troops from Afghanistan, the Iron Curtain collapsed and, at the Malta Summit, it was stated the Cold War had ended. Candidates may argue that Gorbachev needed to end tensions to gain US aid to help reforms at home, others that he genuinely wanted to remove Cold War tensions.

The question required candidates to consider the merits or otherwise of the suggestion that Gorbachev’s policies changed Cold War relations. Some good knowledge and arguments were seen about the role of Gorbachev’s policies in improving East-West relations. However, some candidates needed greater depth of knowledge and tended to generalize.