As the republics in Russia increasingly turn away from the centrally governed Soviet Union in the late 1980s, President Mikhail Gorbachev struggles to hold the one-party state together. In the summer of 1991, the situation in the USSR escalates: the officials of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union reject the system restructuring (Perestroika) and the opening up to the population (Glasnost) introduced by Gorbachev. During the Moscow August coup from August 19 to 21, 1991, they attempt to overthrow the president. The country remains in a state of political upheaval until the year 2000. Gerhard Schröder, former Chancellor of Germany, highlights the value of Daniel Biskup's documentary work for the history of Russia and Europe in his personal foreword. Additionally, the carefully researched texts are presented in both German and Russian.