Opinion about the disintegration of the Soviet Union is sharply divided.

BBC: Free market flawed, says survey

After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the principal foreign policy and intelligence institutions of the United States considered that communism had disappeared.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: The surging threat in Latin America

After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the principal foreign policy and intelligence institutions of the United States considered that communism had disappeared and they ruled it out as a real threat.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: New threat: communism in Latin America

So much had had to change to make it possible - the disintegration of the Soviet Union, that empire of captive nations, Georgia's declaration of independence nine years ago and legislation passed by the Georgian parliament last year allowing foreigners to buy land.

BBC: A dream of Georgian vineyards

" (1) Gorbachev told the Central Committee on Christmas day that: "The current party and state leadership will not permit the breakup of the federal state....If we cross this line, we will deliberately be heading toward the disintegration of the Soviet Union....Harsh necessity requires actions to preserve the state and secure its unity.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy

North Korea in the mid-1990s was struggling after the collapse of its main economic sponsor, the Soviet Union, and the subsequent disintegration of the communist bloc.

WSJ: A Dictator Steeped in Myth