The life of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet president, in photos

Gorbachev, who died at 91 on Tuesday, ended the Cold War without bloodshed, but could not prevent the disintegration of the Soviet Union

FILE PHOTO: Moscow - Russia - 09/05/2017 - Former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev attends the parade marking the World War II anniversary in Moscow. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File Photo

Mikhail Gorbachev, who ended the Cold War without bloodshed but failed to prevent the collapse of the Soviet Union, died on Tuesday at the age of 91, hospital officials in Moscow said.

Gorbachev, the last Soviet president, forged arms reduction deals with the United States and partnerships with Western powers to remove the Iron Curtain that had divided Europe since World War Two and bring about the reunification of Germany, reported Reuters.

But his internal reforms helped weaken the Soviet Union to the point where it fell apart, a moment that President Vladimir Putin has called the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe" of the twentieth century.