Perestroika and the Party : National and Transnational Perspectives on European Communist Parties in the Era of Soviet Reform

Introduction: Perestroika or about the demise of the communist world? / Francesco Di Palma -- The impact of Perestroika and Glasnost on the CPSU's stance toward the "fraternal parties" in the Eastern Bloc / Peter Ruggenthaler -- Soviet society, Perestroika, and the end of the USSR / Mark Kramer -- Perestroika made in Hungary? The HSWP's approach to the Soviet reform of the late-1980s / Tamas Peter Baranyi -- Yugoslavia and Perestroika 1985-1991 : between hope and disappointment / Petar Dragisic -- The Polish United Workers Party and Perestroika / Wanda Jarzabek -- SED and Perestroika : perceptions and reactions / Hermann Wentker -- Between external constraint and internal crackdown : Romania's non-reaction to Soviet Perestroika / Stefano Bottoni -- Parallel destinies : the Italian Communist Party and Perestrojka / Aldo Agosti -- "I felt as if I was faced with a French Honecker" : the French Communist Party confronted with a world that was falling apart (1985-1991) / Dominique Andolfatto -- A dialogue of the deaf : the CPGB and the SED during the Gorbachev era (1985-1990) / Stefan Berger and Norman LaPorte -- Premature Perestroika : the Dutch Communist Party and Gorbachev / Gerrit Voerman -- The Perestroika and the Greek Left / Andreas Stergiou -- The Austrian communists and Perestroika / Maximilian Graf -- The Spanish Communist Party and Perestroika / Walther L. Bernecker -- Afterword: Gorbachev and the end of international communism / Silvio Pons. Perestroika and the Party......Page 2 Contents......Page 6 Introduction......Page 8 Part I. Eastern Europe......Page 32 Chapter 1. The Impact of Perestroika and Glasnost on the CPSU’s Stance toward the “Fraternal Parties” in the Eastern Bloc......Page 34 Chapter 2. Soviet Society, Perestroika, and the End of the USSR......Page 62 Chapter 3. Perestroika Made in Hungary?......Page 95 Chapter 4. Yugoslavia and Perestroika, 1985-1991......Page 112 Chapter 5. The Polish United Workers’ Party and Perestroika......Page 125 Chapter 6. SED and Perestroika......Page 139 Chapter 7. Between External Constraint and Internal Crackdown......Page 160 Part II. Western Europe......Page 184 Chapter 8. Parallel Destinies......Page 186 Chapter 9. “I Felt as If I Were Faced with a French Honecker”......Page 209 Chapter 10. A Dialogue of the Deaf......Page 223 Chapter 11. Premature Perestroika......Page 243 Chapter 12. Perestroika and the Greek Left......Page 263 Chapter 13. The Austrian Communists and Perestroika......Page 285 Chapter 14. The Spanish Communist Party and Perestroika......Page 305 Afterword. Gorbachev and the End of International Communism......Page 330 Index......Page 338 "Countless studies have assessed the dramatic reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev, but their analysis of the impact on European communism has focused overwhelmingly on the Soviet Union and Eastern bloc nations. This ambitious collection takes a much broader view, reconstructing and evaluating the historical trajectories of Glasnost and Perestroika on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Moving beyond domestic politics and foreign relations narrowly defined, the research gathered here constitutes a transnational survey of these reforms' collective impact, showing how they were variably received and implemented, and how they shaped the prospects for "proletarian internationalism" in diverse political contexts"-- Provided by publisher While studies of the impact of Gorbachev-era reforms have overwhelmingly focused on the Soviet Union and Eastern bloc nations, this ambitious collection assesses their historical trajectories on both sides of the Iron Curtain. It moves beyond domestic politics and narrowly defined foreign relations to examine the reforms' collective impact.