#USSR

When was slavery abolished in your country? The Soviet Union’s myth was one of promised equality and progress. Yet millions lived as state-bound peasants—for them, serfdom was reintroduced and didn’t truly end until the 1970s.

Decades before Russian missiles rained on Ukraine, Moscow had already pulled off a quieter heist: seizing tens of billions in Soviet assets that rightfully belonged to Kyiv.

A Cold War-era missile deployment that helped push the Soviet Union to the negotiating table may hold key lessons for the United States and NATO today. As Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine grinds on, experts are urging Washington to consider similarly bold moves to restore deterrence in Europe, including the visible forward deployment of nuclear-capable weapons.

Struggling to replenish its depleted armored forces, Russia is now pulling Cold War–era T-72A and T-72 Ural tanks—many in disrepair—from long-term storage, according to satellite imagery.