Stars Mark Gorbachev's 80th Birthday in London

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In London on Wednesday VIPs gathered to celebrate the 80th birthday of former president of the Soviet Union Mickhail Gorbachev. Gorbachev was responsible for the reforms that ended the Soviet Union and the Cold War.

Movie stars, singers and politicians walked the red carpet together on Wednesday (March 30) for a gala concert in London to honor former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, who celebrated his 80th birthday earlier in this month.

High profile guests paid tribute to the 1990 Nobel Peace laureate at the Royal Albert Hall, including former Israeli President Shimon Peres, actor-turned-politician Arnold Schwarzenegger, and CNN founder Ted Turner.

[Ted Turner, Founder of CNN]:
"Well, he was instrumental in ending the cold war and letting the Soviet Union, the biggest break up of a country ever, of an empire [go] peacefully and democratically. Pretty good!"Former Polish President Lech Walsea, a contemporary of Gorbachev, was also at the event to honor Gorbachev's achievements.

[Lech Wałęsa, Former President of Poland]:

"His achievement is his failed attempt to reform the communist system which enabled other communist countries to win freedom".

The glitzy red carpet affair, co-hosted by U.S. actors Kevin Spacey and Sharon Stone, underlines the celebrity status Gorbachev enjoys in the West, where he is widely perceived as the man who freed Eastern Europe from Soviet rule and ended the Cold War nuclear stand-off.

[Sharon Stone, Actress]:
"I think he is so popular because he demonstrates to us that we do not need to have enemies and that we can continue to open our hearts wider and wider".

[Brian Ferry, Singer]:
"He is a great man, he brought us out of the cold war".

[Melanie C, Singer, Former Spice Girl]:
"I think because he stood up for change and because he was responsible or partly responsible for a great change in the world and how we are today, our relationship with Russia. So it's a wonderful night to celebrate that".

For those who didn't receive an invitation, tickets to the concert ranged from 195 to 100,000 British pounds. The money raised will go to cancer charities, including the Gorbachev Foundation, Macmillan Cancer Support and The Raisa Foundation, which is named after Gorbachev's late wife who fell victim to the disease.

German rockers The Scorpions also performed at the concert. The band played for Gorbachev at the Kremlin in 1991 and had earlier become the second only Western band to play in the Soviet Union in 1988.

[Matthias Jabs, Guitarist for the "Scorpions"]:
"We had a very big song called "Wind of Change", that was written in Moscow, when we played in 1988 in Moscow Music Peace Festival, at the big stadium. That's where the inspiration came from. Two years later we were invited by him to the Kremlin, so we actually performed, and talked to him".

The evening's performers took to the stage with Gorbachev and many of the special guests to sing together for the grand finale.

NTD News London
Ben/Lidia

Category:

News & Politics

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• The Scorpions

[jumpnjza2]

PUT GORBACHEV ON TRIAL FOR TREASON!

HANG THE BASTARD!

[galantas]

@jumpnjza2 > but russians are now very happy with their great saviour Putin, Yes? They were also very happy when Stalin was alive.Russian are lazy man, they need a leader, which shows the direction, they need strict politic. Gorrbachev was different, he wanted to give more freedom for people. As the result many people can now live in peace. Wishes from ex-soviet union country.

[Spatalian007]

Gorbachev is a social democrat

[tennisguyky]

Gorbachev was a complete and utter disaster for the ex-Soviet and Russian peoples. His so-called "reforms" led to the implosion of the system and left millions in poverty and with no dignity. It is nauseating how these Hollywood fatcats suck up to him. They should have visited Russia in the 1990s and saw how terrible things were because of Gorbachev and Yeltsin. The West never cared about democracy, they only wanted to weaken Russia so they could expand corporately there. Thankfully he is gone.

[procommenter]

Welcome: whores and ass-kissers!

[TheEmzrules]

gorbachev is the americans best friend for finishing of the USSR

[mcamoran]

@jumpnjza2 It was not the Russian people, it was the Soviet people back then!

[jumpnjza2]

@donfromussr

That's right. Can't stand these fucking hollywood pieces of shit salivating over Gorbi like they want to suck his dick. This shit stain plunged millions of people, not only Russians but all Soviet peoples, into poverty.

[jumpnjza2]

This piece of shit Gorbachev should have been publicly hanged in Red Square for his treachery. Russians hate the fucker. 

[boogieblast]

Gorbi the great !