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U.S. boycott of 1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics boycott of the Moscow Olympics was one part of a number of actions initiated by the United States to protest the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan. -
Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) (“Star Wars”)
The intent of this program was to develop a sophisticated anti-ballistic missile system in order to prevent missile attacks from other countries, specifically the Soviet Union. -
Caribbean Basin Initiative
The Caribbean Basin Initiative was a unilateral and temporary United States program initiated by the 1983 Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act. The Caribbean Basin Initiative came into effect on January 1, 1984. -
Mikhail Gorbachev becomes General Secretary of the CommunistParty of the Soviet Union
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the title given to the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. -
Iran-Contra Affair
The Iran–Contra affair was a political scandal in the United States that occurred during the second term of the Reagan Administration. -
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) ratified
It was ratified by the United States Senate on 27 May 1988 and came into force on 1 June of that year. The treaty eliminated nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with intermediate ranges, defined as between 500-5,500 km. -
Berlin Wall collapses
The wall was bulit to separate East and West Germany. When the gates opened more than 2 million people from East Berlin visited West Berlin that weekend to participate in a celebration that was, one journalist wrote, “the greatest street party in the history of the world.” -
1st McDonalds opens in Moscow
The 1st McDonalds opened up on January 31st, 1990. The Soviet Union’s first McDonald’s fast food restaurant opens in Moscow. Throngs of people line up to pay the equivalent of several days’ wages for Big Macs, shakes, and french fries. -
Boris Yelstin elected President of Russia
He was a Russian politician and the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.
