Czechoslovakia and the Prague Spring

The Impact of Soviet rule on Czechoslovakia: 

• Economy and living standards declined
• Any opposition to communism was crushed
• The Communist rule became very unpopular 

Alexander Dubček: 

• January 1968, became the new leader of Czechoslovakia 
• He was a good friend of Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev 
• He was a communist and supporter of the Warsaw Pact but wanted to make communism better and easier to live under. "Socialism with a human face."
• His reforms resulted in the "Prague Spring"- a period of increased political freedom- in April 1968 and lots of criticism of communism resulted. 

Dubček's reforms: 

• Relaxation of censorship=more freedom to say and write things, even if critical of communism. For…