Between ideology and law: the legal and political aspects of the secession of the union republics from the USSR

The article examines some aspects of the collapse of the USSR: the preparation and adoption of the USSR Law on the secession of the Union republics from the USSR, the conducting of referendums on independence in Union republics in 1990-1991 and the All-Union referendum on the issue of preservation of the USSR in 1991. The author poses the questions whether there were any alternatives to the dramatic disintegration processes in the USSR, for what purpose the legal framework for the secession of the Union republics from the USSR was made, and what results this led to. The author comes to the conclusion that the USSR Law “On the procedure of the secession of a Union republic from the USSR” did not have and could not have any enforcement practice, which was both due to the time of its adoption and the procedure it provided. The lack of adequate legal framework provided grounds for the continuation of protracted ethno-political conflicts which, in a number of cases, led to the emergence of de-facto states on the post-Soviet space and to violation of the territorial integrity of former Union republics. Due to inconsistency, delay, and the inability to rely on a short-term forecast of how the situation might develop, the legal basis for the secession of republics from the USSR appeared too late and proved inadequate in creating a framework for the separation of independent states. The matter is, commitment to Soviet ideologisms, by that time devoid of real content, was still predominant among the USSR’s leadership and the deputy corps. That resulted in an uncontrollable and illegitimate collapse of the state, which triggered numerous conflicts and contradictions.