The role of domestic factors in ending the Cold War

Essay from the year 2012 in the subject Politics - History of Political Systems, grade: 1.7, , language: English, abstract: The end of the Cold War left many IR scholars puzzled: how could, after 40 years, the Cold War end that peacefully? Why did Soviet foreign policy change so drastically within a few years? How come US perception of the Soviet Union (SU) changed within a decade from the "evil e...