<span>The answer is he refused to crush rebellions in Eastern Europe. When Mikhail Gorbachev expected the wheels of influence in the Soviet Union in 1985, no one foretold the rebellion he would bring. Gorbachev's local reforms and nuclear decommissioning contracts helped end the Cold War then eventually led to the vivid downfall of communism in Europe.</span>
Why did Mikhail Gorbachev have trouble retaining support from hard-line communists? because <u><em>"he refused to crush rebellions in Eastern Europe"</em></u>
