Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev has died in Moscow at the age of 91. He led the Soviet Union from 1985 until its dissolution in 1991. He has been widely credited with bringing down the Iron Curtain, helping to end the Cold War and reducing the risk of nuclear war by signing key arms agreements with the U.S., including the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. In 1990, Gorbachev won the Nobel Peace Prize. On December 25, 1991, Gorbachev announced his resignation just days before the Soviet Union dissolved.

Mikhail Gorbachev: “In this situation, which follows the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States, I hereby cease to act as president of the Soviet Union.”

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said, “Mikhail Gorbachev was a one-of-a kind statesman who changed the course of history. The world has lost a towering global leader, committed multilateralist, and tireless advocate for peace.”

In Moscow, a top Kremlin spokesperson described Gorbachev as an extraordinary person but said his romanticism about rapprochement with the West was not justified. There are reports in Russian media that Gorbachev will not receive a state funeral. Russian President Vladimir Putin has called the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 the “greatest geopolitical catastrophe” of the 20th century.