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"How did the collapse of the Soviet Union lead to the end of Cold War?

A. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Germany reunited, and Russia and all its satellite nations became democratic.
B. The dropping of the two atomic bombs formally ended the conflict with the Soviet Union.
C. Czar Nicholas II abandoned (abdicated) his throne and his family was executed.
D. The construction of the Berlin Wall led to the separation between East Germany and West Germany."

1 Answer

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Final answer:

The collapse of the Soviet Union ended the Cold War by dissolving the political and ideological rivalry with the West, leading to democratic transitions in Eastern Europe and the rise of the US as the sole superpower.

Step-by-step explanation:

The collapse of the Soviet Union led to the end of the Cold War primarily by dissipating the ideological and political rivalry that had defined the relationship between the Western Bloc led by the United States and the Eastern Bloc dominated by the Soviet Union. The fall of the Berlin Wall symbolized the disintegration of the communist bloc, leading to the reunification of Germany and the move towards democracy and capitalism by former Soviet satellite states.

With the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, Eastern European countries declared independence and sought integration with the rest of Europe, significantly altering the geopolitical landscape. This transition was marked by leaders like Mikhail Gorbachev implementing policies of perestroika (restructuring) and glasnost (openness), loosening controls on satellite states, and ultimately leading to the Soviet Union's dissolution. The United States emerged as the sole superpower, marking the shift from a bipolar world to a unipolar one and signifying the end of the Cold War period.

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