The policies of ‘openness’ and ‘restructuring’ that led to major changes in Soviet society in the 1980s, as well as profoundly influencing East–West relations. Introduced into Soviet domestic politics by Mikhail Gorbachev, who became Soviet leader in 1985, the concepts are described in his book Perestroika (1987). The twin processes aimed to reduce inefficiency and corruption in the former Soviet Union, and to encourage political liberalization. Internally the results of the ‘Gorbachev doctrine’ were mixed and contributed to growing unrest, provoked by nationalist demands and economic discontent, which in 1991 brought about the disintegration of the structure of the Soviet Union, the secession of the Baltic republics, the displacement of the Communist Party from its formerly dominant position, and the formation of a new Commonwealth of Independent States.