What effect did perestroika and glasnost have on eastern eurpoe?

Answer 1

Perestroika and glasnost, initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev in the Soviet Union during the 1980s, led to significant political and social changes across Eastern Europe. Perestroika, which aimed at restructuring the economy, and glasnost, promoting openness and transparency, encouraged movements for greater freedom and reform in countries like Poland, Hungary, and East Germany. These policies weakened the grip of communist regimes, contributing to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the eventual collapse of Soviet influence in the region. Ultimately, they sparked a wave of democratization and the transition to market economies throughout Eastern Europe.