Krushchev and De-stalinization
Stalin dies in 1953
Malenkov becomes Soviet leader from 1953-55
Replaced by Nikita Krushchev in 1955
Begins to remove any support for Stalin through De-Stalinization
First act was to form Warsaw Pact
It signalled less harsh treatment of the Satellite
Malenkov becomes Soviet leader from 1953-55
Replaced by Nikita Krushchev in 1955
Begins to remove any support for Stalin through De-Stalinization
First act was to form Warsaw Pact
It signalled less harsh treatment of the Satellite
what does De-Stalinization mean?
De-Stalinization refers to a process of political reform in the USSR that took place after the death of its de facto leader Josef Stalin in 1953. The reforms consisted of changing or removing key institutions that helped Stalin hold power: the cult of personality that surrounded him, the Stalinist political system and the Gulag labour-camp system, all of which had been created and dominated by him as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, among other titles, from 1922–52.
In the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev’s leadership from 1955-1964 is remembered as a period of “thaw” during the Cold War. Khrushchev’s foreign policy of pursuing peaceful coexistence with the United States and its allies was a dramatic change from previous leaders’ attitudes. In 1956, after Khrushchev had succeeded Joseph Stalin and was beginning to consolidate power, Khrushchev began a process of “de-Stalinization” to weaken his enemies in the Communist Party and strengthen his position as leader. Shortly after this, Khrushchev continued to alter Party policy with his change in approach to foreign policy. This policy of a peaceful coexistence was meant to improve relations between the Soviet Union and the United State and had major implications for the preceding events of the Cold War. Khrushchev’s policy marks a drastic change in Soviet policy and it is, therefore, necessary to understand the effects felt domestically and abroad.