8 Soviet Republics Sign Economic Treaty - October 1991

Pres. Mikhail Gorbachev and the presidents of 8 Soviet republics signed an economic union treaty in Moscow, October 18, that declared "private ownership, free enterprise, and competition" to be the "basis for economic recovery." The presidents of 4 other republics---Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldavia, and Ukraine---boycotted the signing. The Ukrainian parliament voted, October 22, to create an independent armed force that would have a strength of at least 400,000. The Ukranian government announced, October 23, that it would henceforth conduct its own economic transactions with other countries.