Former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney believes that history will eventually do justice to his Russian counterpart Mikhail Gorbachev, who died Tuesday at the age of 91.
Updated yesterday at 5:01 p.m.
“Mikhail Gorbachev was a great man and a great leader with historic achievements,” Mr. Mulroney said in an interview with The Press Wednesday afternoon. And, in my opinion, that’s why, despite the problems and pitfalls he had at home, the story will do him justice. He will be recognized as a global transformational leader. »
By “problems and pitfalls at home”, the former Progressive Conservative Prime Minister refers to the immense economic difficulties that the Russians experienced in the last years of Mr. Gorbachev’s reign, marked by the dislocation of the Soviet Union. After his resignation on December 25, 1991, Mr. Gorbachev practically became persona non grata in his own country, where he lived out of sight.
Mr. Mulroney believes that sooner or later the Russian people will recognize the last leader of the Soviet Union.
He takes the example of US President Harry S. Truman, who left office (1945-1953) with a very high rate of unpopularity. “Forty years later, historians made it the 5e most important president of the American Republic,” he said.
As Prime Minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993, Brian Mulroney was at the forefront of the Gorbachev years (1985-1991) in the USSR and also of the end of the Eastern bloc and a breakthrough in relations between the Soviet Union and the United States.
Mr. Gorbachev transformed his country’s economy and transformed the military attitude. It ended the threat of nuclear weapons and also the cold war. These are huge accomplishments.
Brian Mulroney, former Prime Minister of Canada
“Many people rightly give President Reagan a lot of credit for ending the Cold War. But it takes two to dance, he believes. President Reagan found in Gorbachev his partner in carrying out these major initiatives, supported by the solidarity of NATO and the industrialized countries of the West. »
Farm on Ukraine
Obviously, these transformations have not been a long calm river. Diplomacy also includes its dose of differences, of vigorous exchanges.
Mr. Mulroney cites two cases as examples. When Mikhail Gorbachev stopped in Canada on May 29 and 30, 1990, on his way to a meeting with President George HW Bush in the United States, he wanted nothing to do with the entry of a reunified Germany (which materialized on October 3 1990) in NATO. “I think I convinced him to largely abandon that position,” Mulroney said. I told him he would be humiliated if he stuck to it because President Bush couldn’t accept it. He went to Washington and they settled it out of court. »
PHOTO RON POLING, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev on November 21, 1989
A year later, in 1991, when the republics were preparing to leave the USSR to become independent, Mr. Gorbachev asked Brian Mulroney not to officially recognize the independence of Ukraine. “I told him that I understood him, but that we had, in Canada, 1.4 million citizens of Ukrainian origin and that they had wanted this independence for decades, centuries, remembers Mr. Mulroney. I had Canada’s national interest to defend. »
On a more personal level, Mr. Mulroney believes that he and Mr. Gorbachev maintained a friendship until the death of the Soviet leader. After leaving politics, the two men, who became lecturers, had the opportunity to rub shoulders several times.
He was simple, sometimes very funny, sympathetic and of pleasant manners.
Brian Mulroney, former Prime Minister of Canada
“On the other hand, the death of his wife Raïssa [en 1999] was very painful for him. But after a few years, he became the man I had known before. As Americans would say, he was a ‘Happy Warrior,’” Mr. Mulroney maintains.
Other reactions
In addition, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reacted Wednesday morning, on Twitter, to the announcement of the death of the former secretary general.
“Mikhail Gorbachev had a tremendous influence on the world. He helped end the Cold War, enacted reforms within the Soviet Union, and eased nuclear tensions. He leaves behind an important legacy,” summed up Mr. Trudeau.
“Mikhail Gorbachev will be remembered as a defining leader for Russia. We will remember the leadership of Gorbachev, who brought down the iron curtain and paved the way for a new chapter for Europe,” indicated Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Canadian solidarity
“Dear Brian, Canadians’ calm and respectful demeanor, support and solidarity during these difficult years have been held in high esteem here. We know that the people of your country want the success of our reforms and the democratic transformations that not only us, but the whole world needs. »
Source: Letter from Mikhail Gorbachev to Brian Mulroney, December 25, 1991, quoted in Brian Mulroney’s memoir