In the fall of 1991, Moscow newspapers reported that Yeltsin had discussed with the military the possibility of a nuclear bombing of Kyiv. Did this mean that the CIA's June forecast could come true in October-November 1991? Was a nuclear apocalypse possible in the scenario described by the CIA? Could Ukraine have become a communist reserve? Why did Ukrainians go to the polls en masse to "kill the USSR"? Why did Poland and Canada hold races to be the first to recognize independence, while the United States set tough conditions for Kyiv? How did Kravchuk beat both Moscow and Washington? Who really ruined the USSR?