Mikhail Gorbachev, the final Soviet leader, is remembered by world leaders

• An outpouring of condolences and tributes from international leaders have been in response.
• Mikhail Gorbachev is remembered for his crucial role in ending the Cold War.
• Moreover, he delivered important changes to USSR.

An outpouring of condolences and tributes from international leaders have been in response to the passing of former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who is remembered for his crucial role in ending the Cold War and delivering important changes to the USSR.

According to state news outlets in Russia, Gorbachev passed away on Tuesday at the age of 91 after a protracted illness. From 1985 until the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991, he served as its final president.

In a statement to Gorbachev’s family and friends on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin extended his sympathies, according to state-run news agency RIA Novosti, which cited Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

The former Soviet leader was hailed for his achievements by European leaders, with French President Emmanuel Macron describing Gorbachev as “a man of peace whose choices paved a route to freedom for Russians.”

According to Macron, “His dedication to peace in Europe changed our collective history.”
Gorbachev “paved the way for a free Europe,” the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, wrote on Twitter.

She claimed that “he played a key role in ending the Cold War and bringing down the Iron Curtain.”

Relationship between Putin and Gorbachev: In speeches in 2005, Putin, who worked for the KGB security service when Gorbachev was president, referred to the fall of the Soviet Union as the “biggest geopolitical calamity” of the 20th century.

When Putin invaded Ukraine earlier this year, the Gorbachev Foundation, a think tank he founded to further “democratic values,” published a statement asking for “an early end of hostilities and (the) prompt start of peace discussions.”

Human lives are the most valuable things in the world, according to the declaration.

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