"Perestroika" in the USSR (1985-1991): initiative, search and confusion of the Soviet ruling elite

The transformations in the USSR in the second half of the 80s of the 20th century, which is known as «perestroika», defined a change in the political reorganization of the state, its economic basis, social structure, and also the socio-political life of Soviet society. In the mid-1980s in the USSR, there was a situation in which any changes were possible only with the initiative from above. Definitely, such an initiative was shown. Perestroika (restructuring), which began in April 1985 in the USSR, cannot be considered accidental, invented, or imposed. The need for reform was objective, gradually matured and was due to a number of factors. The paper provides a brief description of the situation in the country by 1985. The author comes to the conclusion that there were two different approaches to the question of how to reform society, and analyzes them.