After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet bloc, the Commonwealth of Independent States was established on 8 December 1991, replacing the USSR. Three Slavic republics compose it (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus), joined on 21 December by 8 other states at the Alma Ata summit.
After the failure of the coup against Mikhail Gorbachev, the breakup of the Soviet empire is confirmed day by day. On Saturday, August 24, Ukraine declared its independence. However, by its economic weight it is the second republic of the USSR.
Lithuania’s independence was proclaimed by parliament, which voted a constitution and a comprehensive legislative framework on ethnic minorities, human rights, private property and the KGB.
Armenia proclaims its independence after a 99% "yes" referendum. But one of the crucial issues that remains to be resolved is the fate of the Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijani territory. Boris YELTsin, who came to Yerevan to meet the Armenian President, offered mediation services between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The Community of Independent States (CIS) ratified by the Minsk Agreements is making the rumour of Mikhail GORBATCHEV’s resignation more and more instantaneous. Andreij GRATCHEV, his spokesperson, talks about the role he intends to retain in this transition period.
Five Central Asian republics have declared themselves ready to join the "Community of Independent States" (CIS) founded under the Minsk Accords. This announcement is a new disavowal for Mikhail GORBATCHEV, whose rumor of resignation is becoming more and more insistent.
One of the leading Azerbaijani leaders, Etibar MAMMADOV, arrived in Moscow underground to negotiate the economic and political independence of his country.
Estonia is proclaiming independence after Lithuania. New problem in perspective for the Kremlin and Mikhail Gorbachev for whom Estonia was an economic laboratory, notably thanks to port activities. In Tallinn, the population expressed its support for the majority of separatists. Even though the country will still have to deal with the USSR economically, the entire local economy is controlled by Moscow.