Mikhail Gorbachev awarded top honour on 80th birthday

[Bernkastel]

Mikhail Gorbachev has been awarded Russia's highest medal on his 80th birthday, in a belated tribute from the homeland where many blame him for the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

The Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, told Gorbachev he would be awarded the Order of St Andrew for his service as the last Soviet leader. Medvedev said leading the Soviet Union during a "very complex, dramatic period" was a tough job. "It can be assessed differently but it was a heavy load," Medvedev said. He will invite Gorbachev to the Kremlin to present the award. Gorbachev has been revered in the west for his liberal reforms that led to the collapse of Soviet communism, but he has been reviled at home, where many hold him responsible for the breakup of the Soviet Union and the ensuing economic meltdown that cost most of their lifetime savings.

Gorbachev has harshly criticised Medvedev and his mentor and predecessor Vladimir Putin for saying they will decide between them who should run for president in the March 2012 election. He described the statements as a show of conceit and disrespect for Russian voters. Putin, who was president from 2000 to 2008, has deplored the collapse of the Soviet Union as the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century", but he congratulated Gorbachev in a telegram, praising him as "one of the great statesmen of modern times, who have made a significant impact on the course of world history". Putin also hailed Gorbachev's charity activities.

Gorbachev is celebrating his birthday with family and friends in Moscow. On 30 March, he plans to attend a charitable gala concert in London's Royal Albert Hall to help raise money for treating patients with blood cancer, the disease that killed his wife Raisa in 1999.

From the Guardian. I have mixed feelings on this. He has done a number of good deeds, such as the charity activities mentioned in the articles. His criticism of Putin and Medvedev is also nice to hear. At the same time, his period in power was disastrous for his nation. I do not personally think he deserves this award.

[K. A. Pital]

"Charity activities"? His rule made so many people plunge into poverty that the Humpback hardly deserves any credit. Well, not his rule par se, but the way he handed everything down to Yeltsin and other little Czars in the Republics. He's an asshole. Glasnost was a soung policy, but his acceptance of radical nationalism, which led to civil wars in Central Asia, etc. is absolutely horrendous and cannot be excused.

[Bernkastel]

Exactly. I suppose that one can give him a small pat on the back for some of the work he has done after his time as President, but him getting this award or anything like it seems to me like something that should be considered an massive insult to all Russians. This award is supposedly being given to him in part for him being "one of the great statesmen of modern times", yet he failed massively as a leader.

How can anyone forget that his time in power ended with the destruction of the USSR and the start of the Yeltsin era. Untold numbers of people have suffered or are dead now thanks to the terrible way he handled critical matters. I'm not even Russian, yet I still manage to feel highly offended that he has received this award. For the charity work he has done since, little acts in response are ok. Yet an award like this really should not be given to a man like Gorbachev and I do not think he will ever deserve to have this award.

[K. A. Pital]

Yeah, "great statesman"? Man. I could understand Western nations giving him awards, after all he destroyed the USSR, their chief Cold War rival. But Russia? *laughs*

On the other hand, Russia has suffered less than smaller former Soviet Republics. Maybe they bless Gorbachov for the poor Tajik workers who flee their malnourished motherland to become slave cheap labour in Russia and fuel its construction industry?

[Bernkastel]

Ah, the other states of the former USSR should not be forgotten. The wars in the Caucasus and the plummet of the central Asian republics to third world shitholes are more tragedies to add to the pile. These were his people, the people he was meant to serve. The last time I checked, the infliction of mass suffering on their own people was not something even respectable leaders were known for. I'd imagine that the most common time Gorbachov gets described as a great statesman is in sarcastic mockery, and feel that is indeed the only time it should be applied to him.

[Thanas]

Gorbachev deserves a lot of credit for his handling of the German reunification. Also, it is not like he personally oversaw the death spiral. After the coup his real political power was minimal, so I do not think the excesses can be blamed on him.

[fgalkin]

Yeah, "great statesman"? Man. I could understand Western nations giving him awards, after all he destroyed the USSR, their chief Cold War rival. But Russia? *laughs*

Russia did not give him an award, Medvedev did. Of course he thinks Gorby is a great statesman, neither he nor Putin nor any of their cronies would be where they are today had Gorby not destroyed the Union. They won, so they love him.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin