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Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty signed
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty banned nuclear missiles with the ranges of 300 to 3,400 miles. Both Gorbachev and President Reagan signed this treaty. -
Gorbachev introduces glasnost
Glasnost or openness was a policy that brought remarkable changes. For example, the government allowed churches to open, released dissidents from prison, and allowed the publication of books by previously banned authors. -
Gorbachev introduces perestroika
Perestroika or economic restructuring was the idea to change and revive the Soviet economy. This idea let local managers gain greater authority over their factories and farms, and people were allowed to open small private businesses. -
Berlin Wall Falls
Huge protests broke out across cities in East Germany because the people wanted the right to travel freely. Egon Krenz was able to restore order by opening the Berlin Wall and allowing people to leave East Germany. -
Jozsef Antall elected prime minister of Hungary
Yeltsin criticized the crackdown in Lithuania and the show pace of reforms. He was a member of parliament and the former mayor of Moscow. -
Vaclav Havel elected president of Czechoslovakia
He served as the last president of Czechoslovakia. He then served as the first president of the Czech Republic after the Czech–Slovak split. -
Lech Walesa elected president of Poland
He was the Soviet blockades first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland from 1990 to 1995. -
Germany reunification takes place
n 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany to form the reunited nation of Germany. -
1st general elections in Romania
General elections were held in Romania on 20 May 1990. They were the first elections held after the overthrow of the Communist regime six months earlier, and also the first public presidential elections.
