As 1990 ended, the Supreme Soviet had taken giant strides, voting to guarantee freedom of worship and create a multi-party system. Meanwhile, Gorbachev struggled to find a way to preserve the union: First he proposed a new central government, then a new Union Treaty with loosened ties between the republics and Moscow. In early 1991, Gorbachev's new Union of Sovereign Soviet Republics won a referendum -- but Yeltsin and several republics boycotted the vote. Demonstrators in Moscow backed Yeltsin against Gorbachev. The Soviet leader, who had adopted a more hard-line stance in late 1990, was losing respect among reformers.
By April 1991, Georgia declared its independence. Two months later, Russians elected Yeltsin to the newly created post of president, making him the first democratically elected leader in Russian history. Meanwhile, Gorbachev moved away from his hard-line approach and formulated a reform package with nine of the republics. But the Soviet Union still needed American aid. Gorbachev repeatedly asked Bush for help with his economic problems, but there was no support in Washington for bailing out the Soviets.
Back in Moscow, storm clouds were brewing: In December 1990, Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze resigned -- and warned Gorbachev of a hard-line coup. The CIA, too, warned of a possible hard-line coup against Gorbachev -- a warning that was passed on to the Soviet leader. But Gorbachev ignored the omnious forcasts and went on vacation in the Crimea. He would return a changed man.
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