One of the most significant events of the 20th century was the dissolution of the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR) in 1991. The reason why this event was so important was because it ended tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States of America, the Cold War and the rule of one of the greatest world powers of the time. There are many reasons for this collapse, and it has been postulated that Perestroika reforms had the most significant effect. The reforms, implemented by Mikael Gorbachev, were intended to address the dire financial and economic situation the country faced due to the incompetence of the Stalinist regime. Although these reforms were designed with the best intentions, they unfortunately failed, ultimately leading to great dissatisfaction with Gorbachev's leadership. The Communist Party was so unhappy with its leader's performance that it staged a coup to remove him from power (History.com). Thus, by the end of 1991, the Perestroika reforms directly led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union due to the collapse of the economy, the lack of modernizing infrastructure and the inability of the Communist Party to move towards democracy. One of the main goals of the reforms was to address the collapsing economy. Once Gorbachev issued and implemented his reforms, the Soviet Union's economy was destroyed (Danks 5). For example, the Prohibition of Alcohol, which was a law created to prevent the sale and production of alcoholic beverages, led to lower profits for many businesses, causing unemployment and inflation (Danks 5). The ban was created so that the workforce would be more efficient and could help the economy grow, but it had the opposite effect by decreasing the number of available jobs and... middle of paper......the System. New Brunswick, NJ, USA: Transaction, 1989. Print. Ilya Zemstov was a Russian political expert and professor who lived in the Soviet Union. He wrote countless books, including “Encyclopedia of Soviet Life,” “The Private Lives of the Soviet Elite,” and “Chernenko: The Last Bolshevik: The Soviet Union on the Eve of Perestroika.” The other author, Professor John Hynes Farrar, is Professor of Corporate Governance and Commercial Law in the Division of Business and Economics at the University of Auckland. He wrote numerous articles on economics and reform, including "Law Reform and the Law of Commission" and "Introduction to Legal Method." Their article includes information about the Perestroika modernization program, what exactly was reformed and which Eastern European countries participated in it. in reform, particularly in matters of foreign policy.