2017 History Institute "What is Eurasia? And Why Does It Matter?" Chris Miller, Research Director, FPRI Eurasia Program; Assistant Professor of Hsitory, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University presenting The Rise and Fall of the USSR as a Global Power Why did the Soviet Union rise so rapidly to become one of the world's two superpowers? How did it collapse equally rapidly, to its own surprise and the surprise of its neighbors? Is the history of the Soviet Union unique, or does it portray patterns of governance found elsewhere in Eurasia?