Mikhail Gorbachev's 1988 UN Speech

Mikhail Gorbachev's 1988 UN Speech
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Why Did Gorbachev Choose the United Nations as His Forum for this Speech?
The rise to power of Mikhail Gorbachev ushered in a new era in Russian politics. Gorbachev was the first Russian leader in the Cold War era to take a more reconciliatory tone with the United States which culminated in the famous United Nations General Assembly speech of 1988. The United Nations provides an opportune forum for world leaders to deliver policy actions and thoughts. The United Nations General Assembly provided Gorbachev the chance to showcase the changing nature of Russia to the rest of the World. Moreover, it is the only body within the United Nations where all member states are represented. This forum helps to shine a light on major issues that affect most member states and provides member states an opportunity to take positions on the raised issues as well promote international political cooperation. Gorbachev used the forum as it provided coverage for his message and also enabled him to communicate the next steps towards the end of the cold war.
What Did Gorbachev Mean By “De-Ideologizing Relations Among States”? What Implications Did this have for Superpower Nations?
The de-ideologization of interstate relations is one of the most famous slogans from Gorbachev’s speech and it marked new political thinking in Russia (Gorbachev, 1988). According to Gorbachev, the new political thinking required that states move away from propaganda and instead engage in critical evaluation and promotion of ideologies that serve to improve the human condition. As Gorbachev took over control of the Soviet government, he implemented western-friendly policies such as glasnost and perestroika which served to prove that Russia had moved away from political and social ideologies that did not benefit the people (Colley, 2011). It is also evident that as Russia moved to a new ideological era it ha...