Gorbachev, last Soviet leader, dies at 91

The death of Mikhail Gorbachev triggered an outpouring of tributes from Western leaders yesterday but reaction was muted in Russia, where many blamed the last Soviet leader for the loss of the country's status as a global superpower.

Gorbachev, who changed the course of history by triggering the demise of the Soviet Union and was one of the great figures of the 20th century, died on Tuesday aged 91.

Russian news agency reports said he had died in a central Moscow hospital "after a serious and long illness".

The funeral of Gorbachev will take place in Moscow on Saturday. The ceremony will be held in the Moscow Hall of Columns, then Gorbachev will be buried at the prestigious Novodevichy cemetery, the Interfax news agency reported, citing Gorbachev's daughter Irina.

Gorbachev's life was one of the most influential of his times, and his reforms as Soviet leader transformed his country and allowed Eastern Europe to free itself from Soviet rule.

President Vladimir Putin, who called the Soviet collapse the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century, has spent much of his more than 20-year rule reversing parts of Gorbachev's legacy.

In a letter of condolences published by the Kremlin, Putin said Gorbachev "was a politician and statesman who had a huge impact on the course of world history".

Other senior Russian officials also described Gorbachev as an important figure, but said little of his political accomplishments.

But in the West, where Gorbachev was regarded fondly and affectionately referred to as Gorby, he was hailed as an iconic figure.

US President Joe Biden credited Gorbachev with having "the imagination to see that a different future was possible and the courage to risk his entire career to achieve it.

"The result was a safer world and greater freedom for millions of people," he said.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Gorbachev's "tireless commitment to opening up Soviet society remains an example to us all", while UN chief Antonio Guterres called him "a one-of-a-kind statesman".

French President Emmanuel Macron praised Gorbachev as a "man of peace whose choices opened up a path of liberty for Russians," and former German chancellor Angela Merkel said he demonstrated how "one single statesman can change the world for the better".

Gorbachev won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990 for negotiating a historic nuclear arms pact with US leader Ronald Reagan, and his decision to withhold the Soviet army when the Berlin Wall fell a year earlier was seen as key to preserving Cold War peace.