Topline
The final leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, was buried in Moscow on Saturday after a funeral that was snubbed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and not accorded the status of a formal state service, despite Gorbachev’s standing as one of the most important political figures of the past half-century.
The body of late Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev is seen during his funeral Saturday at the … [+]
Key Facts
Gorbachev’s funeral was held at the palatial Pillar Hall of the House of the Unions, and he was later buried at Novodevichy Cemetery alongside many other distinguished Russians.
The event was not a formal state funeral, which would have required Putin to attend and invitations to be sent out to foreign leaders—Putin’s spokesman claimed he was too busy to attend.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán appeared to be the only foreign head of state to attend the service.
Gorbachev died Tuesday at age 91 following years of deteriorating health, primary due to kidney problems.
As Soviet leader from 1985 to 1991, Gorbachev enacted drastic reforms in the country promoting increased economic and individual freedom, but the communist state collapsed just a day after his resignation on December 25, 1991, leading to the Soviet Union splitting into 15 independent countries.
Putin and many other former KGB officials considered the fall of the Soviet Union to be a catastrophe, and the two figures appeared to have a cold relationship as Gorbachev became a vocal Putin critic in his later years, with the Soviet leader’s longtime interpreter saying the Russian invasion of Ukraine “really crushed him emotionally and psychologically.”
Honor guards stand by during the funeral of late Soviet Union President Mikhail Gorbachev.
Irina Virganskaya, Gorbachev’s daughter, says goodbye to him for the last time at his funeral.
Hungarian President Viktor Orban attends the funeral.
Mourners lay flowers on Gorbachev’s grave at Novodevichy Cemetery in Moscow.
People stand in line to attend Gorbachev’s funeral.
People line up to pay last respects to Gorbachev beneath a pro-war propaganda sign reading “we will … [+]
Irina Virganskaya, 2nd left, her husband Andrey Trukhachev, center, and granddaughter Anastasia … [+]
People line up to pay last respects to Gorbachev at his funeral.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/09/03/in-photos-gorbachev-laid-to-rest-after-moscow-funeral-that-putin-didnt-attend/