In December, 1991, the world watched as the Soviet Union collapsed into fifteen seperate countries. The western capitalists/ democracies viewed this as a victory for freedom over tyranny, capitalism over socialism, and democracy over communism. This was the official end of the Cold War.
The fall of the Soviet Union started in 1984 when Baltic States such as Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia demanded independence. Many believe Gorbechev's glasnost was the cause the feeling of independence from these countries. Gorbechev failed to react to this and decided to not punish these Baltic States. This later led to the nationalists in other Soviet States such as Ukraine and Georgia demanding independence. On August, 19th 1991 a group of Communists kidnapped Gorbechev and reported that he was too ill to govern. The population was furious and demanded that Gorbechev would come back to govern. The kidnappers gained no repsect nor favor so they decided to release Gorbechev. After viewing that he could not contol his country, Gorbechev resigned December 25, 1991.
By January of 1992 the entire Soviet Union had collapsed. The independent states however stilled shared economies and in some instances militaries. These countries must recreate their infrastructure, political system, and economies.