politician and the fifth General Secretary
of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
. He led the Soviet Union from 13 February 1984 until his death thirteen months later, on 10 March 1985. Chernenko was also Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet
from 11 April 1984 until his death.
Chernenko was born to a poor family in the village of Bolshaya Tes (now in Novosyolovsky District
, Krasnoyarsk Krai
). His father, Ustin Demidovich (of Ukrainian origin), worked in copper and gold mines while his mother took care of the farm work.
Chernenko joined the Komsomol
(Communist Youth League) in 1929, and became a full member of the Communist Party in 1931.
Those who try to give us advice on matters of human rights do nothing but provoke an ironic smile among us. We will not permit anyone to interfere in our affairs.
The Soviet Union has long been proposing to outlaw chemical weapons, to remove them from the arsenals of states. We are prepared for resolution of this problem either on a global basis or piece by piece. As one of the first steps the USSR and the other socialist countries proposed in January 1984 that agreement be reached on ridding Europe of all types of chemical weapons.
Washington's adventuristic policy, whipping up international tension to the utmost, is pushing mankind towards nuclear catastrophe.
As a great socialist power the Soviet Union is fully aware of its responsibility to the peoples for preserving and strengthening peace. We are open to peaceful, mutually beneficial cooperation with states on all continents. We are for the peaceful settlement of all disputable international problems through serious, equal, and constructive talks.