ASRJC Prelim 2025 SBQ Suggested Approach

1 1(a) Compare and contrast the evidence provided in Sources A and B on Soviet and Western approaches to foreign policy toward Eastern Europe in the late 1980s. [10] Sources A and B are similar in showing Gorbachev’s shift away from traditional Soviet control over Eastern Europe. Source A suggests that Gorbachev agreed with Thatcher’s observation that he was in “favour of each country choosing its own road of development so long as the Warsaw Treaty is intact.” Similarly, Source B reinforces the idea of a major turn -around in foreign policy when Gorbachev announced plans to unilaterally reduce the massive Soviet military presence in Eastern Europe, as suggested in the line “Today I can inform you of the following: The Soviet Union has made a decision on reducing its armed forces” showing how the USSR sought to reduce Soviet military presence and aggression in Eastern Europe. Hence both Source A and B show that Gorbachev sought to loosen Soviet control over Eastern Europe. Sources A and B share similar views regarding the abandonment of an interventionist approach backed up by the threat of force towards Eastern Europe due to similarity in context. Gorbachev sought to reform and restore Soviet economy and society. Gorbachev was determined to alleviate economic stagnation and address political challenges within the Soviet Union via glasnost and perestroika. Ther desire to focus on domestic developments led Gorbachev to introduce New Political Thinking to reduce Cold War competition with the US and in turn alleviate the financial burden of maintaining a huge military presence within the Eastern Bloc states. This would in turn allow the Soviet Union to focus its energies on internal domestic reforms and ultimately save its economy. However, Sources A and B are different in terms of portraying the differing receptivity towards change in Eastern Europe between Thatcher and Gorbachev. Thatcher in Source A had cautioned Gorbachev about changing the status quo in Eastern Europe, especially with regards to the reunification of Germany. On the other hand, Gorbachev in Source B spoke with conviction that demilitarization was necessary, as suggested by the line “It is obvious, for instance, that the use or threat of force can no longer, and must no longer, be an instrument of foreign policy.” This means that Gorbachev was willing to embrace making drastic changes and make major departures from his predecessors with regard to Soviet policy in the region. Sources A and B are different in their opinion on change because of their different target audience and purpose. Source A was a private conversation between Thatcher and Gorbachev so she was able share her earnest thoughts and concerns with Gorbachev and advise him against endorsing drastic changes in Eastern Europe. As this was conducted away from public scrutiny, she could afford to abandon making politically correct statements. Given the improved relations between the US