On February 25, 2020, according to RIA Novosti, Yazov, the last marshal of the former Soviet Union, died at the age of 95.
It is no exaggeration to say that Yazov's death symbolizes the true passing of an era. He witnessed the rise and glory of the Soviet Union, as well as its decline and disintegration.
This great military strategist and statesman still kept a clear head on his deathbed and was worried about the future development of Russia.
He once said to President Vladimir Putin: "Russia should learn from China. ”
This sentence undoubtedly carries a lot of weight, and it has also caused quite a stir in Russian political circles.
Marshal of the Soviet Union from a poor background
In 1924, Yazov was born into a very poor family in the Omsk region of the Soviet Union.
He is well aware of the difficulties of his parents, and has been working part-time since he was very young, working as a newspaper delivery man and postman while studying. After the outbreak of World War II, at the age of 17, Yazov resolutely joined the ranks of the Red Army and participated in the Great Patriotic War against the German army.
Due to his excellent performance in the battle, there was also a lack of good talent within the Soviet army, and Yazov was quickly promoted. From lieutenant platoon commander to corps commander.
Yazov has always been known for his calmness and seriousness, and he has paid special attention to the formulation and observance of military rules and orders.
In his opinion, the first thing a qualified or even excellent soldier must do is to unconditionally obey orders.
In the process of managing the army and marching and fighting, he also strictly implemented this principle. Both the lowest-ranking soldiers and the highest-ranking officers must strictly follow orders, with no exceptions.
Of course, if you want to convince the public, you must first be strict with yourself. Yazov, who came up from the bottom, also knew this very well, and in the face of enemy artillery fire, he never flinched, always taking the lead, speaking with experience and achievements.
Even after the end of World War II, Yazov did not relax his high standards.
Although Yazov had a wealth of experience in actual combat, he had never received systematic training in military theory, and he knew that he was still lacking in this area, so he also went to the Frunze Military Academy for further study.
Without the pressure of wartime, Yazov, who had entered the era of peace, still worked more than 10 hours a day and actively promoted military reform.
After Gorbachev came to power, he paid special attention to military reform, and Yazov was also reused.
Previously, Yazov had only relied on his wartime aura to rise step by step, but after Gorbachev came to power, Yazov finally got the opportunity to get close to the center of Soviet power.
In 1984, under Gorbachev's promotion, the 60-year-old Yazov was promoted to deputy defense minister.
An accident three years later promoted Officer Yazov to one level.
A young West German named Rust flew a plane from Finland and landed on Red Square in Moscow. This is known as the "Rust Flight Incident".
The "Rust flight incident" itself did not cause any serious consequences, but it made Gorbachev extremely angry: an ordinary young man piloting an ordinary plane was able to fly from abroad and land directly on Red Square without encountering any obstacles. What is the Soviet air defense, which has always said that it is invulnerable, what is it for?
For this, Defense Minister Sokolov was dismissed and replaced by the then Deputy Minister Yazov.
In such a short period of time, such an astonishing promotion was accomplished, and foreign media talked about it one after another, saying that Yazov had no real talent at all, and he completely relied on Gorbachev to ascend to power.
Yazov did not care about these voices. He was a soldier, and he always remembered the principle of his life for most of his life: obey orders and complete tasks.
For Yazov's performance, the superiors were very satisfied.
In 1990, Yazov was awarded the rank of marshal.
At this time, the collapse of the Soviet Union was not far away, and Yazov also became the last marshal of the Soviet Union.
The reform failed and he was imprisoned
Originally, Yazov believed that he and Gorbachev had the same goal, and that they both hoped to stabilize the situation in the Soviet Union through reform and follow what they insisted was the right path.
However, Yazov soon discovered that Gorbachev's ideas had seriously deviated.
Under the pressure of domestic and foreign difficulties, Gorbachev began to frequently pinned his hopes on the friendship and concessions of Western countries, and not only took the initiative to put forward conditions for self-disarmament, but even said that he could consider giving up nuclear weapons.
Seeing Gorbachev like this, Yazov did not understand it very much, and there was a huge disagreement with Gorbachev.
With the wave of democratization, the Tbilisi national movement broke out in the Soviet Union, which made the contradictions between Yazov and Gorbachev completely laid out on the surface.
All sides in the Soviet Union expressed strong dissatisfaction with the military's use of force to suppress the national movement. And Gorbachev, who made this decision, directly put the blame on Yazov.
After that, Gorbachev "shook the pot" nakedly many times, without the slightest sense of responsibility and mind as a leader.
As these incidents accumulated, Yazov completely lost his trust and expectations for Gorbachev and began to adopt an attitude of gradual distancing himself from or even opposing Gorbachev.
And Gorbachev, who lost Yazov's support and assistance, did not try to win him over again, but turned his head to promote younger, more controllable generals.
In 1991, the Soviet Union entered an unprecedented stage of turmoil, with the attacks of Western countries on the outside and the centrifugation of its allies on the inside. Gorbachev's previously planned course of reform has been a complete failure.
At this time, the "democrats" led by Yeltsin took the opportunity to appear on the scene, vigorously advocating the Western model, and promoting the progress of the collapse of the Soviet Union in various ways.
As a conservative, Yazov certainly does not want to see such an outcome happen. In desperation, he and other committee members hurriedly laid out a plan to arrest Yeltsin, but this plan did not succeed because of insufficient preparation.
Eventually, the USSR collapsed, and Yeltsin rose to the pinnacle of power as the victorious side.
Yeltsin, who had been embarrassed by Yazov, was certainly unwilling to let Yazov go easily after coming to power. He put Yazov in prison on charges of "treason".
This outstanding soldier and army marshal who once commanded the battlefield became a prisoner of the ranks.
However, Yazov, who was locked up in prison, did not think too much about his situation, because something more painful happened to him, the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Yazov was born and raised in the Soviet Union, and fought bloodily for the Soviet Union. For the USSR, he had deep feelings.
As long as the thought of half his hard work being wasted and the motherland falling apart, Yazov's heart ached so much that he could not help himself.
He blamed himself for the result of this regret and spent years in boundless resentment and regret.
It was not until 1994 that Yeltsin had to release Yazov due to public opinion and pressure from the outside world.
In his later years, he regained respect and appreciation
In fact, after Yeltsin came to power, Russia's state did not improve, but became more precarious.
Yeltsin, who knew he was powerless to control the situation, announced his resignation.
In 2000, Russia had a new president, and he was Putin, who is still in office today.
Completely different from Yeltsin, Putin has a special affection for the Soviet Union.
Because of these feelings, Putin has great respect for Yazov, a veteran who fought for the Soviet Union.
Putin once said of Yazov: He is an outstanding army leader, and both his courage and strength will always be worthy of the respect of the Russian people.
At Putin's invitation, Yazov, who had been dormant for many years, was able to return to the army and was awarded medals one after another.
At this time, Yazov was already in his seventies, and he was able to be appreciated again, and Yazov's heart was full of gratitude.
As a leader with a very distinctive personal style, Putin's rigor, firmness, hard work and strength have all fallen into Yazov's eyes. Yazov couldn't help but believe that Putin could lead Russia into a new look.
Sure enough, after some extremely difficult years, Russia finally ushered in a turning point under Putin's leadership.
These are the things that Yazov, who once stood in the late Soviet period and was preoccupied, was looking forward to.
The good development of Russia, perhaps, to a certain extent, finally made up for Yazov's regrets back then. When he saw Putin, he couldn't help but hold Putin's hand and praise: "You are a real leader!"
Yazov, who was entering his old age and lacked energy at that time, was no longer able to assist Putin. Living a semi-retired life, the most common thing he does is to sit quietly and look at his walls full of photos and medals.
In his mind, he often had pictures of living and fighting in the Soviet army. He couldn't help but sigh: "What a beautiful thing it was to be young, idealistic and enthusiastic at that time!"
However, Yazov, who is nostalgic for the good old days, has never given up paying attention to the situation. In his last days, he still paid attention to the world pattern and had a very deep insight into the changes in the international situation.
At his last meeting with Putin, Yazov also specifically mentioned his concern for China's development and left Putin with this thought-provoking phrase: "Russia should learn from China." ”
"Learning from China's Path"
Putin was also deeply shocked when he heard this.
So why did Yazov say such a thing?
In fact, Yazov has always been very interested in China, and he has always been relatively friendly to China.
At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, China and the Soviet Union had a "honeymoon period".
It was also at that stage that Yazov gained an in-depth understanding of China.
In fact, there was no unity in the Soviet Union towards China, with some people believing that China should be supported and aided, while others believed that China should be controlled. Yazov believes that China and the Soviet Union should maintain friendly relations so that the interests of both countries can be maximized.
Nowadays, it seems that this is a very rational and friendly attitude.
In 1959, Sino-Soviet relations took a sharp turn for the worse, and Yazov did not want to see such a situation, but he was powerless to recover it.
It was not until the end of the 70s that Yazov had more say in political affairs, and he began to try to use some ways to ease the contradictions between China and the Soviet Union and promote Sino-Soviet cooperation.
In the process, Yazov became more and more appreciative of China: in his opinion, China's development is miraculous. In such an isolated and helpless situation back then, China was still able to maintain its original aspiration, get rid of the control of Western countries, take the road of socialism, and develop so well. It's simply impossible.
Yazov was deeply pleased with Russia's resurrection, but he couldn't help but worry that the legacy of the Soviet Union had not been completely resolved, so what should Russia's path take next?
Today, Russia still faces the problem of a single industrial structure and a high degree of dependence on natural resources. That is, one day these resources will be eaten up, and the situation of Russia will be difficult to predict.
In addition, for a long time, Putin has dealt with all kinds of internal and external troubles with a tough hand. But now that Putin is getting older, Russia's future is still uncertain if there is no successor.
Under these legitimate concerns, Yazov thought of China's development path and encouraged Putin to learn from China, which is very reasonable.
Only by drawing on China's valuable experience and taking into account Russia's national conditions and current situation can we make the right choice to embark on a development route that belongs to Russia.
Yazov's words to Putin are full of hope and regret. Implicit in his entrustment was the desire to restore the "Union State".
In 2020, Yazov passed away.
History has always been rolling forward, leaving no room for regret. But those who come after are always able to stand on the shoulders of their predecessors and reflect on how to continue to complete the unfinished business.
Yazov and Putin may have completed such a relocation, and we will wait and see.
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