ABSTRACT
The rapid and peaceful disintegration of the USSR came as a surprise to most outside observers of Soviet politics. This chapter provides the concise historical background of Ukraine under the late tsarist empire and the USSR. It describes the decay of the USSR, the rise of "national communism" in Ukraine, and Ukraine's role in the disintegration of a world superpower. The chapter analyzes the roles of Russia and Ukraine in ensuring that the USSR undertook a "civilized divorce" in December 1991. It discusses the hurried and largely unplanned agreement to replace the USSR with the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which inevitably led to disagreements between Ukraine and Russia. The USSR therefore disintegrated not at once—as in Yugoslavia—but in a "civilized divorce" extending over a six-year period from 1991 to 1997. The chapter discusses the Soviet legacy in general and how it specifically affects politics and society in post-Soviet Ukraine.
