Eastern bloc

The Eastern Bloc refers to the group of socialist states in Central and Eastern Europe that were aligned with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, primarily from the end of World War II until the fall of communism in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This bloc included countries such as Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria, and was characterized by a centralized economy, one-party rule, and close political and military ties to the Soviet Union.