New Union Treaty

Six of the fifteen Soviet republics, however, did not participate in the drafting of the treaty: Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

As an additional restrictive element, some autonomous republics expressed the desire to raise their status and to be a party to the new Soviet treaty.

On 17 March 1991, the nine republics (Russia, Byelorussia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenia, and Uzbekistan) which participated in the drafting of the treaty held a popular referendum.

[5] In the August 1991 draft of the treaty, the proclaimed name for the new country was the Union of Soviet Sovereign Republics (Russian: Союз Советских Суверенных Республик, romanized: Soyuz Sovetskikh Suverennykh Respublik).

On 18 August, the hardliners took control of the government after confining Gorbachev in his Crimean dacha in order to stop him from returning to Moscow to sign the treaty.

[9] The signing of the Belovezha Accords on 8 December 1991 by Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus marked the official dissolution of the Soviet Union, converting the Republics as independent states.

Involvement of the Soviet republics in the New Union Treaty.
Supported the confederation (both before and after the August coup).
Supported the confederation, but moved towards independence after the August coup.
Boycotted the confederation, demanding full independence.
Ballot paper of the referendum of 17 March 1991
Tanks on Red Square during the August Putsch