Abstract
<jats:p>The crisis in interethnic relations in the late perestroika period affected not only the Union republics but also individual regions of the RSFSR. The most critical situation developed in the North Caucasus, where each re-public had its own complex specifics and approached problems differently. The experience of the official au-thorities of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic can be cited as an example of one of the most effective ap-proaches to resolving problems of national policy and interethnic relations. Analysis of the actions of the Su-preme Council of the Kabardino-Balkarian ASSR and specific government officials in the late 1980s and early 1990s revealed that the factors that contributed to their effectiveness were, first and foremost, a firm and clear stance during periods of opposition activity (rallies, protests) and a willingness to support the initiatives and pro-jects of national movements. Furthermore, the authorities did not shy away from public discussions of contro-versial issues of historical memory. Certainly, there were mistakes, but they were not critical, and the authorities managed to preserve the unity of the republic.</jats:p>