Sarah Paine – Why Russia Lost the Cold War

[HPP] Dwarkesh PatelDecember 19, 20251h 54min

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US Strategy and External Pressures

💡 Ronald Reagan's military buildup, including the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), significantly strained the Soviet economy, which was already spending a disproportionate amount of its GNP on defense.
🎯 The Helsinki Accords' human rights clauses and Jimmy Carter's subsequent campaign empowered dissidents across the Eastern Bloc, eroding belief in communism by highlighting the gap between promised liberation and delivered dictatorship.
🔑 **Richard Nixon's

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Cold WarSoviet Union collapseRonald ReaganStrategic Defense Initiative (SDI)Helsinki AccordsHuman RightsSino-Soviet SplitUS Naval PowerEastern Bloc uprisingsEconomic inefficiencyGorbachev's reformsGerman unificationGeorge H.W. BushHelmut KohlOil prices

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