Reagan’s hand in ending the Cold War

(NewsNation) – Of the successes measured during former President Ronald Reagan’s tenure, one of the greatest was his role in ending the Cold War decades.

When he took office, Reagan presented an objective focused on containing communism and winning the Cold War against the Soviet Union.

The two nations were in an arms race building nuclear weapons in the name of their political ideologies.

That Saturday, NewsNation will show the 90-minute documentary “Reagan: Portrait of a Presidency” about the life and legacy of President Ronald Reagan, narrated by actor Dean Cain. The documentary will air from 9:00 pm to 10:30 pm ET (8:00 pm to 9:30 pm CT), followed by “Reagan: The Post Show” with NewsNation senior political contributor George Will and top Washington anchor Leland Vittert from from 10:30 am. -11pm ET (9:30am-10am CT). To find NewsNation on your screen, go to JoinNNN.com.

Although the Cold War never led to direct armed conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union, each superpower supported the armed struggles of pro-communist or pro-democratic groups in other parts of the world, such as Korea, Vietnam, and the Middle East. East. .

“I decided that we had to send as powerful a message as possible to the Russians that we would no longer stand by while they armed and financed terrorists and subverted democratic governments,” Regan wrote in his book. autobiography.

The former president convinced Congress to increase military spending by 13% in 1982, forcing the Soviets to follow suit. As the Soviet nation began to fall behind in an economically unsustainable arms race and former leader Mikail Gorbachev came to power, Reagan felt an inroad.

Reagan involved Gorbachev, a reformer not a revolutionary, in negotiations that would lead to the end of the Cold War. During this period, the two formed a professional bond that is still a reference in geopolitical relations.

On June 12, 1987, Reagan took aim at the Berlin Wall, the physical manifestation of the battle between communism and democracy that divided Germany and the entire European continent during the Cold War, according to The History Channel.

In one of the most unforgettable speeches of his presidency, he said: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.” The speech was later seen as a turning point in the Cold War, the outlet reported.

When Reagan left office in January 1989, he had already achieved his goal of ending the Cold War.

Mikhail Gorbachev publicly acknowledged the failures of Soviet ideology and eventually abandoned Marxism-Leninism and began to dismantle the power of the Communist Party in favor of a more open political system, in accordance with the Council on Foreign Relations.

Reagan’s tactics were a “departure from his three immediate predecessors, Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, who focused on a policy of détente with the Soviet Union, minimizing Cold War tensions and trying to promote peaceful coexistence between both”. nations”, according to The History Channel.

Reagan rejected détente as a “one-way street that the Soviet Union has used to pursue its own goals.”

In it praise for Reaganformer British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher discussed her seminal role during the Cold War.

“He won the Cold War, not only without firing a shot, but also by inviting enemies out of his stronghold and turning them into friends.”