The best explanation for the collapse of the Soviet Union is a combination of internal and external factors. Internally, economic stagnation, political repression, and social unrest eroded public confidence in the government and its socialist ideology. Externally, increased pressure from Western countries and the arms race with the United States strained the Soviet economy and military resources. The reform policies of Mikhail Gorbachev, such as glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring), aimed at revitalizing the Soviet system but ultimately undermined the stability of the Communist Party and led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
