In the long course of human history, there has been a nation that has risen to greatness, and its greatness has not been based on vast territory, pluralistic peoples, or shared beliefs. This country is not the Soviet Union, but a unique existence, whose greatness stems from the common ideals in the hearts of all, and not geographical borders.
The rise of this nation is not just an ideological war, but a vision of the future of humanity, a desire to be free from poverty, oppression and inequality. Guided by the ideals of this country, workers have ushered in the best of times, where people work together and unite for a common vision, unlike traditional ideological conflicts.
With its unique institutions and values, this country has built a powerful economy and military power, not only making its citizens prosperous and powerful, but also surpassing other countries on a global scale, and even making the once hegemonic United States tremble. Under the guidance of this country, mankind has stepped out of the earth and entered the era of the universe, achieving the first space station in human history and creating a new era of human exploration of the universe.
Just when the country was at its peak, a crisis triggered by internal bureaucracy and power struggles pushed it to the brink of collapse. The ideal country eventually fell apart, allowing those who once struggled under its banner to witness the shattering of their ideals. At this painful moment, an even more embarrassing scene appeared.
With the collapse of the country, the cosmonauts, once the highest technological symbol of the Soviet Union, could not return home because they had lost their homeland.
In recent years, our understanding of the Soviet Union has gradually deepened, and looking back at the Soviet Union, although it was later demoted to the Soviet Union, there were signs of confrontation with us, but the brilliant achievements of the Soviet Union in the early days are awe-inspiring.
In those days, it was striking that even Jews, who were considered evil, were seen in the Arab world to participate in the Great Patriotic War for the Soviet Union. At the same time, American scientists, who are considered democratically trained by the Americans, went so far as to volunteer to provide data on the atomic bomb. Although the Soviet Union was only half as powerful as the United States at the time, it succeeded in causing shocks within the United States, and even made people wonder if the Soviets possessed some kind of magic that could forcibly control the minds of others.
The powerful deterrent of the Soviet Union forced the American capitalists to improve labor conditions. During the period of the struggle for hegemony between the United States and the Soviet Union, many Americans experienced the legend of the American Dream firsthand, especially the Carter era, which can be called the most prosperous period for workers. These are the changes in American society triggered by the huge existence of the Soviet Union, and the adjustments that Americans have to make in order to cope with competition.
Of course, the Soviets made a major breakthrough in the field of space not just by forcing the Americans to make concessions. Gagarin became the first person to go into space, and the efforts of the Soviets led to the successful launch of the first space station.
At the time, the American public was outraged by the Soviet Union's space prowess, and there were even reports that a fart by a Soviets in space could collapse the entire United States. Such remarks are reminiscent of the prestige of the Soviet Union in those years, especially in space research, when the United States was far inferior to the Soviet Union.
It is a pity that many of the great miracles created by the Soviet Union were eventually destroyed by the Americans. Precisely, it was not the influence of external factors such as the Voice of America, as we have learned in textbooks, but the main reason was the problem with the Soviet social model and some greedy Soviet bureaucracy.
Despite the fact that there is so much to say about it that dozens of papers are difficult to exhaust, in any case, the Soviet Union came to an end in 1991 with its great end.
At that time, Gorbachev raised his glass in celebration, Yeltsin gave a high-spirited speech, the soldiers wept, and some even chose to commit suicide because of this. At this moment of grief, there was an even more tragic incident on the Soviet space station.
As mentioned earlier, the Soviets broke the bonds of humanity and built the world's first space station, which led many cosmonauts to embark on space journeys. And at this critical moment, it was Krikalev's turn to work on the space station. As an ordinary human being, it was an amazing thing to be able to step into the universe, let alone work hard for the noble ideals of Soviet socialism, which should have been an exciting time.
Tragedy struck Krykalev just as he completed his space mission and was ready to return home. A terrible news came that the Soviet Union, in which he had believed all his life, had perished, and the Russian Federation could not take him home for financial reasons.
It is impossible to imagine what kind of turmoil the Soviet cosmonaut experienced in his heart when he heard the news. As bystanders, we can only feel the tremendous pressure of that humiliation and despair.
At this critical juncture, the Americans stepped up and demonstrated remarkable humanitarianism. They are willing to help the Russian space station, not only directly expressing their willingness to pay a high price to hire the cosmonaut, but also promising to fully assist him in returning to Earth.
It is worth noting that in the context of that time, the Soviet Union had already been carved up by the capitalists, and Russia had experienced Soros's shock therapy, and the economy was in trouble. In such a difficult situation, the help provided by the Americans was undoubtedly a lifeline. The average person may accept this help out of a need for survival, whether for personal gain or to survive.
The Soviet cosmonaut, however, did not hesitate to refuse the help of the Americans, because he insisted that he was a Soviet cosmonaut and would never betray his country.
This steadfast refusal is played out in space, and people can't help but be moved. Faced with the imminent loss of his home, the astronaut would rather choose to continue to watch in the far reaches of space than accept the hand that saved his life. He used his life to show the world that Soviet cosmonauts would never be treacherous.
Of course, while the cosmonauts showed such amazing integrity, the Russian Federation did not sit idly by. Although the country was impoverished and unable to provide funds to directly support the return of astronauts, they found a way to save the country by exploiting and providing space resources to obtain funds from Western countries.
This innovative strategy paid off quickly and received significant financial support in Germany and other countries. After a series of communications with the United States, the Russian Federation was able to raise the funds needed to welcome the astronauts back.
So, after being trapped for 311 days, Krikalev finally came to the rescue of his own country. He set foot on the territory of the earth.
According to records, when the astronaut returned to Earth, he was so weak that he could not even walk on his own. Thankfully, with careful care, he was able to recover his health.
Years later, when he was asked why he had refused American aid in the first place, he replied firmly: "I am a Soviet, and I am loyal to my homeland." This sentence is sonorous and powerful, and once again makes the Americans feel that the soul of the USSR is still alive. It is a pity that, despite the fact that the cosmonaut retained respect for the Soviet Union, the name of the USSR, like those veterans, is no longer found on Earth.