President Reagan’s Situational Leadership: Focusing on the strategy of the collapse of the Soviet Union

Abstract

This paper analyzes the leadership of President Reagan, who is credited with winning the Cold War and restoring American pride, by focusing on his strategy for the collapse of the Soviet Union. Reagan pursued ‘peace through strength’ and implemented strategies to fulfill this vision, arguing that the existing policies of containment and détente were ineffective and deceptive. First, he cut off the flow of funds to the Soviet Union by blocking the flow of technology to the Soviet Union, sabotage operations through the supply of fake technology, and a strategy to depress international oil prices. Second, the Soviet-Afghan war and the development of the SDI were used as a “poison pill” to make the Soviets pour money into the country like water. Third, he supported democratization in Poland and Eastern Europe, and used human rights as a weapon in the public opinion war to pressure the Soviet Union into regime change. Finally, his leadership was marked by his ability to persuade the public as a great communicator. To be effective, a political leader must have a guiding ideology that is responsive to the times and historical calling. He was a leader who was able to adapt his approach to the changing political environment and demonstrated situational leadership, using both transactional and transformational leadership to achieve his goals. In other words, he had a sense of the times and was able to articulate a vision to the people. In this respect, President Reagan is a prime example of the importance of situational leadership.