Cika wannan jumlar: Haɓaka Mikhail Gorbachev zuwa Sakatare Janar a 1985 da kuma'sabon tunaninsa' game da manufofin waje da na cikin gida wataƙila babban mahimmin abu ne a cikin shawarar Soviets na janyewa. Gorbachev ya yi ƙoƙari ya cire Tarayyar Soviet daga koma bayan tattalin arziki wanda ya kafa a karkashin jagorancin Brezhnev, da kuma sake fasalin tattalin arzikin Soviet da kuma hoton tare da Glasnost da Perestroika manufofi. Gorbachev ya kuma yi kokarin sauƙaƙe tashin hankali na Yakin Cacar Baki ta hanyar sanya hannu kan Yarjejeniyar Tsakanin Nuclear Forces tare da Amurka a 1987 da kuma janye dakarun daga Afghanistan, wanda kasancewar sa ya sami babban zargi na duniya. Gorbachev ya dauki rikici da China da kuma sakamakon da ya haifar da dakarun soji a kan wannan iyaka a matsayin daya daga cikin manyan kuskuren Brezhnev. Beijing ta bayyana cewa daidaita dangantakar za ta jira har sai Moscow ta janye dakarunta daga Afghanistan (a tsakanin sauran abubuwa), kuma a shekarar 1989 aka gudanar da taron kolin Sin da Soviet na farko a cikin shekaru 30. A lokaci guda, Gorbachev ya matsa wa abokan kawancensa na Cuba a Angola don rage ayyukan da kuma janyewa duk da cewa abokan Soviet sun fi kyau a can. Har ila yau, Soviets sun janye dakarunsu da yawa daga Mongolia a 1987, inda kuma suna da sauƙin lokaci fiye da Afghanistan, kuma sun hana sojojin da ke cikin Mongolia.
mamayewar Vietnam ta Kampuchea har zuwa batun janyewar gaba daya a shekarar 1988. Wannan janyewar dakarun Soviet daga irin wadannan yankunan da ake takaddama da su sosai ya nuna cewa shawarar gwamnatin Soviet ta bar Afghanistan ta dogara ne akan canjin canji a cikin manufofin kasashen waje na Soviet - daga daya daga cikin rikice-rikice don kauce wa rikici a duk lokacin da zai yiwu.