How did the Soviet Union affect other nations in Europe

n April 1986, Mr. Gorbachev began the perestroïka which was to end the Cold War that brought down the Iron Curtain. This separation between West and East not only partitioned the world into two parts, but also divided the European family for over 40 years.

The reforms, called "reconstruction" (translation: pérestroïka), would radically change the policies of the USSR but also the dominant global order. They would upset the geopolitical map of Europe and provide for the establishment of democracies on nearly the entire European continent.