The Sinatra Doctrine was the name that the Soviet government of Mikhail Gorbachev used jokingly to describe its policy of allowing neighboring Warsaw Pact nations to determine their own internal affairs. The name alluded to the Frank Sinatra song "My Way" --- the Soviet Union was allowing these nations to go their own way. State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ... (Russian: , IPA: , commonly anglicized as Gorbachev; born March 2, 1931) was leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991. ... Unofficial Seal of the Warsaw Pact Distinguish from the Warsaw Convention, which is an agreement among airlines about financial liability. ... Francis Albert Sinatra (December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer who is one of the highest acclaimed male popular song vocalists of all time. ... My Way is a popular song, which in its English-language version is an adaptation by Paul Anka of the French song Comme dhabitude, written by Claude François and Jacques Revaux. ...

This was a major break with the earlier Brezhnev Doctrine, under which the internal affairs of satellite states were tightly controlled by Moscow. This had been used to justify the invasions of Czechoslovakia in 1968 as well as of the non-Warsaw Pact nation of Afghanistan in 1979. By the late 1980s, structural flaws within the Soviet system, growing economic problems, the rise of anti-communist sentiment and the effects of the Afghan war made it increasingly impractical for the Soviet Union to impose its will on its neighbours. The Brezhnev Doctrine was a Soviet policy doctrine, introduced by Leonid Brezhnev in a speech at the Fifth Congress of the Polish United Workers Party on November 13, 1968, which stated: When forces that are hostile to socialism try to turn the development of some socialist country towards capitalism, it... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... MacGyver is one of the symbols of the 1980s in America The 1980s decade refers to the years from 1980 to 1989, inclusive. ...

The phrase was coined on 25 October 1989 by Foreign Ministry spokesman Gennadi Gerasimov. He appeared on the popular U.S. television program Good Morning America to discuss a speech made two days earlier by Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze. The latter had said that the Soviets recognised the freedom of choice of all countries, specifically including the other Warsaw Pact states. Gerasimov told the interviewer that, "We now have the Frank Sinatra doctrine. He has a song, I Did It My Way. So every country decides on its own which road to take." He was asked whether this would include Moscow accepting the rejection of communist parties in the Soviet bloc. He replied: "That's for sure . . . political structures must be decided by the people who live there." October 25 is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 67 days remaining. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Gennadi (or Gennady) Gerasimov was the foreign spokesman for Mikhail Gorbachev and later press secretary to Eduard Shevardnadze. ... Good Morning America or GMA is the weekday morning news talk show of the American Broadcasting Company television network (ABC). ... Eduard Amvrosiyevich Shevardnadze (Georgian: ედუარდ შევარდნაძე, Russian: Эдуа́рд Амвро́сьевич Шевардна́дзе; pronounced ed-oo-ard am-vro-see-ye-vitch she-va-rd-nad-zuh) (born 25 January 1928) is a Georgian politician. ... Unofficial Seal of the Warsaw Pact Distinguish from the Warsaw Convention, which is an agreement among airlines about financial liability. ...

The "Sinatra Doctrine" has been seen as Moscow giving permission to its allies to decide their own futures. In fact, it was a retrospective policy, as Soviet allies had already acquired much greater freedom of action. A month before Gerasimov's statement, Poland had acquired its first non-communist government since the 1940s. The government of Hungary had opened its border with Austria in August 1989, dismantling the Iron Curtain on its border. As Hungary was one of the few countries that East Germans could travel to, thousands travelled there so that they could flee across the newly-opened border to the West. To the great annoyance of the East German government, the Hungarians refused to stop the exodus. // Events and trends World War II was a truly global conflict with many facets: immense human suffering, fierce indoctrination, and the use of new, extremely devastating weapons such as the atomic bomb. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Countries behind Iron Curtain are shaded red. ... GDR redirects here. ...

These developments greatly disturbed hardline communists such as the East German leader Erich Honecker, who condemned the end of the traditional "socialist unity" of the Soviet bloc and appealed to Moscow to rein in the Hungarians. Honecker faced a growing crisis at home, with massive anti-government demonstrations in Leipzig and other East German cities. Shevardnadze's speech and Gerasimov's memorable description of the new policy amounted to a rebuff of Honecker's appeals. The message was: "don't bother us with your problems, work them out yourselves." Erich Honecker (25 August 1912–29 May 1994) was a German Communist politician who led East Germany (German Democratic Republic) from 1971 until 1989. ... (help· info) [] (Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk) is the largest city in the Federal State (Bundesland) of Saxony in Germany. ...

The proclamation of the "Sinatra Doctrine" had dramatic effects across the Soviet bloc. The beleaguered East German government had hoped for a Soviet intervention to defend communism in East Germany and elsewhere. However, the announcement of the "Sinatra Doctrine" signalled that the Soviet Union would not aid the East German communists. A few weeks later the Communist governments of East Germany, Czechoslovakia and Bulgaria were ousted, signalling an end to the Cold War and the division of Europe. The Cold War was the protracted geopolitical, ideological, and economic struggle that emerged after World War II between the global superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States, supported by their alliance partners. ...

References

• "'Sinatra Doctrine' at Work in Warsaw Pact, Soviet Says", Los Angeles Times, 25 October 1989