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It is the twilight of the Soviet empire. With the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Kremlin loses its iron-fisted grip on Eastern Europe. As events spiral out of control, Mikhail Gorbachev finds his authority challenged from within -- both from communist hard-liners, and from a popular reformer named Boris Yeltsin.
 
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| He saved Mikhail Gorbachev, then helped bring about his downfall. He fast-tracked economic reform, then sacked his reformers. He urged more freedom, then cracked down on critics. Who is -- or was -- the real Boris Yeltsin?
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| The United States and the U.S.S.R. spent trillions of dollars to maintain a "balance of terror" during the Cold War. Was it worth it?
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| With its economy in tatters, its leadership in question and its very soul wounded by the collapse of communism, Russia faces a daunting future. Historian Vladislav Zubok looks at the decline of the Soviet empire.
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| Almost a decade since the Cold War ended, the "new world order" remains largely undefined. Six leaders -- including Nelson Mandela and Moammar Gadhafi -- offer their assessments about an international system for the 21st century.
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| For the past six months, we've asked you to share your Cold War memories. Here is a sampling of what you told us.
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TIME: The Russian Revolution
September 2, 1991
Pravda: Emergency measures are temporary
August 20, 1991
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According to one estimate, the Cold War arms race cost $8 trillion. That is about $1,300 for every person on Earth.
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