Mikhail Gorbachev - the man who changed the world
The last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, has died, aged 91. The Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's Steve Rosenberg looks back at his interviews with one of the most important figures of the 20th century.
The last leader of the former Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, has died in hospital aged 91. Mr Gorbachev, who took power in 1985, is widely considered to have been one of the most important figures of the 20th century. He helped to end the Cold War, embraced nuclear disarmament - and tried to make the world a safer place. But he was unable to prevent the collapse of his own country - a bloodless revolution which happened at a speed no one had predicted. And many Russians blamed him for the years of turmoil that followed.
The Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ's Russia Editor, Steve Rosenberg, has lived in Moscow for 30 years and interviewed Mr Gorbachev several times. For 5 Minutes On, he looks back at the life of an extraordinary statesman. And he talks about his own memories of a warm, generous man with a great sense of humour.
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