Which unofficial transcript of the CIS reflects its essence more brightly?

Until now, there is no unequivocal answer to the question of the reasons for the collapse of the Soviet Union. The most liberal-minded historians, and just ordinary people believe that this happened for legitimate reasons, say "the empire has outlived its own, and on its ruins should create smaller, but very democratic countries." Others suggest that the Soviet superpower was destroyed by hostile forces sent from the US and Europe. Still others attribute this merit to dissidents (usually they themselves adhere to this opinion). On the ruins of the USSR in December 1991, the Commonwealth of Independent States arose , to which many former citizens of a great country had placed the hopes of the future unity of fraternal peoples.

Hopes and Reality

The founders of this international organization, in the person of Boris Yeltsin, Stanislav Shushkevich and Leonid Kravchuk, from the very beginning did not give a special reason to believe that it would become a supranational entity. Psychologically, it was soothing, it seemed that everything was in some way one. The CIS states retained their independence, moreover, at the first stage, their citizens often had an euphoria similar to that that covered the emigrant who got into the "capitalist paradise" after the gray "scoop". It seemed that everything would now be different, in a foreign way. The systemic crisis that swept the entire territory of the former Union, dispelled these hopes, the notorious market turned out to be a beautiful ground for the seizure of state property by those who found themselves bolder or simply brazen ("Courage - Reward to the Hero"). The popular interpretation of the CIS of those years explained that the word "essen" in German means "is" (in the sense of eating), and the letter "G" is the initial food title offered to the people (another option: "The Very Present G ..." ).

Expansion of the borders of the Commonwealth

The treaty signed in Minsk did not oblige anyone to anything, and this is the main reason why almost all the former republics of the USSR soon joined it, except for the Baltic countries, which were especially acutely aware of their own European essence. So, in a historically short period, 12 countries joined the CIS. The list of participants in the treaty, in addition to the founding countries of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, included Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Georgia, joined after some reflection.

Positions of Russia in the CIS in the first years of its existence

In a sense, Russia and the CIS at the first stage were related in the same way as Great Britain and the countries of the British Commonwealth after the collapse of the colonial system. The difference, however, was, and significant. The "people's fronts" and movements of nationalism that came to power in many of the former Soviet republics fired "Russian occupants", sometimes turning to real pogroms, and the Russian leadership of that time looked at what was happening with a strange expression, seemingly approving and slightly Censuring these "fruits of democracy and the rise of national identity." Since the interpretation of the CIS unequivocally said that the commonwealth is, of course, a commonwealth, but the states are still independent, then for any timid remarks of Yeltsin about the inadmissibility of ethnic cleansing and slogans about a suitcase, station and final destination (historical homeland), the answer Was one: "It's none of your business, we'll decide everything ourselves!"

Strange transition period

At the same time, energy resources and raw materials continued to flow through the old, still Soviet system of power transmission lines and pipelines, and prices for all the released wealth remained symbolic. In fact, former brothers, and now independent neighbors, taking an increasingly hostile attitude towards Russia, continued to parasitize on it.

Another popular then popular interpretation of the CIS - "Hitler's Hope come true."

There were other consequences, not always pleasant. The borders remained transparent, and no one controlled them. Labor illegal migration began, a spontaneous flow of goods. The same revived Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia suddenly turned into the world's largest metal exporters, without having any metallurgical industry.

On the television screen reigned "Field of Miracles", in the economy there were things, much more amazing, bordering on fantasy.

The situation was also used by representatives of the criminal world, committing crimes in one independent power and taking refuge in another.

CIS today

The inefficiency of the Commonwealth of countries, which previously formed a single whole, is easy to prove. The entrance or exit from it does not entail any legal or economic consequences and can only serve as a symbol of protest, as in the case of Georgia, which left the CIS in 2008 after the August war, resenting that the Russian army intervened in the conflict in South Ossetia . It is unlikely that such a "revenge" puzzled the leadership of the Russian Federation, and other participants in a respected international organization, at least, no acute reaction was observed.

The Customs Union is an alternative to the CIS

To implement plans for serious economic cooperation mentally, politically and territorially close countries - the former republics of the Union, another structure has been created, with much less vague membership principles and much more effective. From the USSR, the states inherited powerful and high-tech aerospace, nuclear, energy and engineering industries, initially built for unified programs. The Customs Union allows them to be used at full capacity, avoiding bureaucratic barriers for the benefit of all participants of this economic inter-state association.

Apparently, the Commonwealth of Independent States will cease to exist as useless. And if they do, they will remember it, in a joking manner. "Save Us Our Lord!" - this interpretation of the CIS, there is hope, already in the past, like the "Set of Insolent Gad", "Consciously Breaking Borders".