Mikhail Gorbachev Kiev, Ukraine. In 2006, he expressed his continued belief in Lenin's ideas: "I trusted him then and I still do". He claimed that "the essence of Lenin" was a desire to develop "the living creative activity of the masses". Taubman believed that Gorbachev identified with Lenin on a psychological level. Taubman described Gorbachev as "a true believer—not in the Soviet system as it functioned (or didn't) in 1985 but in its potential to live up to what he deemed its original ideals." As Soviet leader, Gorbachev believed in incremental reform rather than a radical transformation; he later referred to this
Mikhail Gorbachev Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, saying the move "is not the work of a great mind." Gorbachev also said that "all agreements aimed at nuclear disarmament and the limitation of nuclear weapons must be preserved for the sake of life on Earth." Gorbachev signed the U.S.-Soviet nuclear disarmament treaty in 1987 with President Ronald Reagan. Gorbachev hailed the George H.W. Bush’s role in helping end the Cold War following the news of the former President's death, saying: "We had a chance to work together during the years of tremendous changes. It was a dramatic time that demanded great responsibility from everyone.