Source: Mikhail Gorbachev, Address to the United Nations General Assembly, December 7, 1988.
"Today, we are entered upon an era when progress will be based on the common interests of the whole of humankind. The concept of development at another's expense is becoming obsolete. The compulsion and arms race which accompanied the Cold War are no longer viable instruments of foreign policy. The principle of freedom of choice is mandatory. This applies to both the capitalist and socialist systems. We are also witnesses to the most important landmark in our history: the decision to reduce our armed forces. Over the next two years, the Soviet Union will unilaterally reduce its army by 500,000 men and withdraw combat divisions from Eastern Europe. We do this to foster trust and transition to a new international order."
Which of the following best explains the shift in Soviet foreign policy described in the excerpt?
- AThe direct consequence of United States military spending and the Strategic Defense Initiative forcing an immediate Soviet capitulation
- A combination of severe internal economic stagnation, domestic political restructuring, and a desire to negotiate diplomatic agreements with the WestCevap
- CA grassroots uprising of Soviet citizens that had already successfully overthrown the communist leadership by 1988
- DA unilateral decision by Eastern European satellite states to dissolve the Warsaw Pact prior to Gorbachev's speech