Soviet Succession Research Articles

Imbalance of Power: The Soviet Union and the Congo Crisis, 1960–1961

The 1960–1961 Congo crisis was a defining moment for the Cold War in the Third World. This article combines declassified Soviet documents with published and archival sources from the United States, Great Britain, and Ghana to assess the role of the Soviet Union in the development of the Congo crisis. The Soviet government initially worked to establish economic relations with the newly formed independent government in Congo, but Soviet leaders had to shift their strategy when confronted by Western intervention in Congo and the prospect of a civil war. Despite Nikita Khrushchev's threats that Soviet troops would intervene in the conflict, the USSR did not have the military wherewithal to guarantee the survival of the Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba or other pro-Soviet elements. This outcome ended a brief phase of Soviet success in Africa and significantly altered Soviet policy in the Third World.

How the Soviets Explored the Cosmic Void and Found … Nothing

James T. Andrews and Asif A. Siddiqi, eds., Into Cosmos. 344 pp. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2011. ISBN-13 978-0822961611. $27.95. Andrew L. Jenks, The Cosmonaut Who Couldn't Stop Smiling. 318 pp. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University Press, 2011. ISBN-13 978-0875804477.$35.00. Eva Maurer, Julia Richers, Monica Ruthers, and Carmen Scheide, eds., Soviet Space Culture. 344 pp. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011. ISBN-13 978-0230274358. $90.00. In fullness of time, Soviet success in space exploration during 1950s and 1960s may well overshadow defeat of Nazis as greatest Soviet achievement. (Alexei Kojevnikov, in his introductory essay in Into Cosmos, goes so far as to say that Sputnik and Gagarin are on their way to attaining status of historical icons, like the pyramids, Great Wall, Santa Maria, evolution, and atomic bomb.) Many countries have evicted an invading army, but only one launched first satellite and first man into space, with added dramatic element of doing so just years after losing millions of citizens and a tremendous amount of economic infrastructure in a war. Despite historical significance and emotional appeal attached to inauguration of Space Age, body of scholarly literature related to Soviet space program remains somewhat undeveloped, with most existing works focused on lifting cloak of secrecy surrounding launches and personnel. The opening of Soviet archives has by now allowed historians to establish reliable answers to fundamental questions such as were true Soviet aims in space? and how close were Soviets to landing a man on moon? Especially thanks to publication of Asif Siddiqi's encyclopedic Challenge to Apollo historians can turn their attention away from what cosmonauts and engineers did and toward what rockets meant. The three books considered here represent a part of this shift, as each aims to highlight impact of space exploration on Soviet society, using space travel as a lens to examine Soviet project more broadly. In addition to this common emphasis, books share a remarkably critical attitude to their object of study, consistently pointing out failure and duplicity that surrounded program. An unstated conclusion impresses itself on mind of anyone who reads them in tandem: while Soviets attempted to use space exploration to support their contention that a socialist country could best chart a path to stars and inaugurate a new era for humanity, they ultimately found in cosmic void nothing usable--only empty space. The unusual thematic unity of these books, two of which are collected volumes and therefore not necessarily expected to promote an argument, derives in part from significant level of common authorship. Andrew Jenks, author of Gagarin biography, contributes an essay to Into Cosmos; Slava Gerovitch, Victoria Smolkin-Rothrock, and Roshanna Sylvester each offer articles in both Into Cosmos and Soviet Space Culture; and Siddiqi writes introduction and an article for Into Cosmos and epilogue for Soviet Space Culture. The limited degree to which volumes diverge from their shared outlook appears related to nationality of authors whose works appear in all three books. The Cosmonaut Who Couldnt Stop Smiling is by an American, and American historians dominate Into Cosmos. Both are far more critical in tone than Soviet Space Culture, which features authors from Europe as well as United States, and essays of European provenance are more descriptive than interpretive. Aside from these few exceptions, overwhelming impression made by three books is that Soviet spaceflight, rather than a world historical accomplishment or romantic struggle to break bonds of earth, in truth lays bare fundamental emptiness of Soviet project as a whole. …

Soviet Sports and the Efficiency of Central Planning

The failure of economic central planning in the Soviet Union is interpreted as evidence of the impossibility of efficient central planning. But the deficiencies of the Soviet economy might have resulted from other factors, such as Soviet history, culture, leadership, and/or unique circumstances, such as the Cold War. If so, the failure of the Soviet Union would not necessarily constitute evidence against the impossibility of central planning under different conditions. Yet, in some areas such as chess and the Olympics, central planning in the Soviet Union was remarkably successful. We examine the implications of Soviet successes in Olympics and chess to reassess the epistemic and motivational arguments against central planning. We contend that three factors help explain Soviet sports successes: first, the objectivity of success in sports or chess in contrast with the subjectivity of economic success; second, the importance of fame and renown as motives for Olympic class athletes and chess grand masters; and third, the poor economic performance of the Soviet Union, which helped ensure incentive compatibility. The Soviet Union’s success in achieving goals that did not require complex economic information or a fundamental realignment of incentives, but not in centrally planning the economy, reinforce the epistemic and motivational arguments against economic central planning.

How a Race Was Won

Epic Rivalry . The Inside Story of the Soviet and American Space Race. By Von Hardesty and Gene Eisman . National Geographic, Washington, DC, 2007. 367 pp. $28, C$36. ISBN 9781426201196. The authors consider why, after the early Soviet successes, American astronauts were the first (and, so far, only) to walk on the Moon.

At the borderline of Armageddon: how American presidents managed the atom bomb

Part 1 Preface Part 2 Part 1: The Logic of War, 1941-1952 Chapter 3 At the Beginning: Churchill, Roosevelt and Truman Part 4 Part 2: Setting the Rules for the Long Haul, 1953-1968 Chapter 5 Nuclear Deterrence or Preventive War? Eisenhower's Choice Chapter 6 John Kennedy: From Crisis to Triumph to Tragedy Chapter 7 Lyndon Johnson: The Offense-Defense Riddle Part 8 Part III: Facing the Problems of Parity, 1969-1980 Chapter 9 Richard Nixon: Only Connect Chapter 10 Gerald Ford: A Time to Plant Chapter 11 Jimmy Carter: The Limits of Presidential Power Part 12 Part IV: A Break With the Past, 1981-1988 Chapter 13 The Reagan Revolution in Nuclear Weaponry Part 14 Part V: Once More into the Unknown Chapter 15 George H. W. Bush: Managing the Soviet Succession Chapter 16 William J. Clinton: Facing New Threats Chapter 17 George W. Bush: Overthrowing the Old Order Part 18 Afterword

Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears: From Oscar to consolation prize

The article traces the changing status of Vladimir Men'shov's Oscar-winning film, Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (1979). This film, lauded by Hollywood for its ‘apolitical’ celebration of three women in Brezhnev's Russia, has nonetheless gone through various, more complex interpretations by various audiences, both at home and abroad. A movie known in the West as a Soviet success on the red carpet, this film has today inspired a new, very different generation of Russian television heroines in serialized dramas. What appears to us a Cinderella story is now seen at home as the foundation for sadder, ‘consolatory’ tales. Ironically, the ability to forge a career and find a husband has become so difficult in modern Moscow that Men'shov's film is today endlessly, ironically referenced as a tale that should come true — but. never does.

Trade and Exchange Rate Policies in Formerly Centrally Planned Economies

This paper examines the international economic policies of the eastern European and Soviet Successes States in the early 1990s which provide one of those wide‐open windows of opportunity when powerful vested interests are not lobbying for retention of an existing tariff structure. Moreover, the simultaneous abandonment of central planning by over two dozen countries provided a natural experiment in which a range of differing policies might have been pursued. Policymakers in transition economies have generally ended up pursuing liberal non‐discriminatory trade and foreign exchange policies. There are exceptions and the majority may be wrong, but the presumption is that, perhaps after a learning or trial‐and‐error process, decision makers have found the rules of thumb suggested by economists to be their best guide to international economic policy. This paper notes that integration of transition economies into the global trading system has been surprisingly successful. Almost all the countries in transition from central planning have accepted the WTO rule‐based system in principle, even if there are variations in trade policies and performance, and have generally pursued multilateral non‐discriminatory trade policies. In particular, the potential danger of regionalism proving more attractive than multilateralism has not eventuated. The revealed behaviour of policymakers suggests that trade liberalisation is a good rule of thumb and regional groupings among transition economies have been insignificant. Despite a proliferation of new currencies, varying exchange rate regimes, and differing degrees of currency convertibility, the general pattern has been to accept convertibility for current account transdactions, and in many cases to extend this to a de jure commitment and to allow substantial capital account convertibility. A general policy conclusion in favour of more open and non‐discriminatory trade and exchange policies have passed the test of acceptability by policymakers in over two‐dozen countries in this category.

The early development of Russia's ballistic missile defense system

The study is a rare attempt to explore the early history of Russian ballistic missile defense on the basis of recently declassified Russian archival documents, from first efforts to research the possibility to create missile defense to large‐scale efforts to build national missile defense prior to signing the Anti‐Ballistic Missile Treaty in 1972. Analyzed are the Soviet successes and failures in creating, testing and implementing some important elements of ballistic defense, as well as their reasons. Also researched is the Soviet decision to sign the ABM Treaty and why it was made. A special section is dedicated to the role of the Soviet leaders in Russia's road to ballistic missile defense.

The Early Soviet Success Story

The Early Soviet Success Story

Anthony D'Agostino. <italic>Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev</italic>. Boston: Allen and Unwin. 1988. Pp. xvi, 274

Journal Article Anthony D'Agostino. Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. Boston: Allen and Unwin. 1988. Pp. xvi, 274 Get access D'Agostino Anthony. Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. Boston: Allen and Unwin. 1988. Pp. xvi, 274. Woodford McClellan Woodford McClellan University of Virginia Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar The American Historical Review, Volume 95, Issue 1, February 1990, Page 214, https://doi.org/10.1086/ahr/95.1.214 Published: 01 February 1990

Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev.

Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev.

Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. By Anthony D'Agostino. Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1988. 274p. $45.00.

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Book Reviews

AbstractBook reviwed in this article From Arrian to Alexander: Studies in Historical Interpretation. By A. B. Bosworth. The Jews in the Greek Age. By Elias J. Bickerman. Greeks, Romans and Barbarians. By Barry Cunliffe. On Pagans, Jews, and Christians. By Arnaldo Momigliano. The Crusades: A Short History. By Jonathan Riley‐Smith. Searches for an Imaginary Kingdom: The Legend of the Kingdom of Prester John. By L. N. Gumilev. Translated by R. E. F. Smith. The Papal Prince, One Body and Two Souls: The Papal Monarchy in Early Modern Europe. By Paolo Prodi. Translated by Susan Haskins. Britannia: A History of Roman Britain. By Sheppard Frere. The English: A Social History, 1066–1945. By Christopher Hibbert. Suffolk and the Tudors: Politics and Religion in an English County, 1500–1600. By Barmaid MacCulloch. Village Revolts: Social Protest and Popular Disturbances in England, 1509–1640. By Roger B. Manning. The Civil Wars of England. By J. P. Kenyon. Politics, Society and Civil War in Warwickshire, 1620–1660. By Ann Hughes. Charles I and Oliver Cromwell: A Study in Contrasts and Comparisons. By Maurice Ashley. Criticism and Compliment. The Politics of Literature in the England of Charles I. By Kevin Sharpe. London Crowds in the Reign of Charles II: Propaganda and Politics from the Restoration until the Exclusion Crisis. By Tim Harris. The Quakers and the English Legal System, 1660–1688. By Craig W. Horle. Ladies Elect: Women in English Local Government, 1865–1914. By Patricia Hollis. Nobles in Nineteenth‐Century France. The Practice of Inegalitarianism. By David Higgs. The Search for Social Peace: Reform Legislation in France, 1890–1914. By Judith F. Stone. The Reluctant Empress: A Biography of Empress Elisabeth of Austria. By Brigitte Hamann. Translated by Ruth Hein. Philip IV and the Government of Spain, 1621–1665. By R. A. Stradling. Jewish High Society in Old Regime Berlin. By Deborah Hertz. Rethinking German History: Nineteenth‐Century Germany and the Origins of the Third Reich. By Richard J. Evans. Germany and Europe in the Era of the Two World Wars: Essays in Honor of Oron James Hale. Edited by F. X. J. Homer and Larry D. Wilcox. The Making of Three Russian Revolutionaries: Voices from the Menshevik Past. By Leopold H. Haimson in collaboration with Ziva Galilii y Garcia and Richard Wortman. Stalin: Man and Ruler. By Robert H. McNeal. Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. By Anthony D'Agostino. Cecil Rhodes: Flawed Colossus. By Brian Roberta. Foundations of Representative Government in Maryland, 1632–1715. By David W. Jordan. “To Serve Well and Faithfully”: Labor and Indentured Servants in Pennsylvania, 1682–1800. By Sharon V. Salinger. The Concept of Liberty in the Age of the American Revolution. By John Phillip Reid. Rhetoric and History in Revolutionary New England. By Donald Weber. Greatness in The White House: Rating the Presidents, Washington Through Carter. By Robert K. Murray and Tim H. Blessing. Towards a Christian Republic: Antimasonry and the Great Transition in New England, 1826–1836. By Paul Goodman. The Overthrow of Colonial Slavery, 1776–1848. By Robin Blackburn. Paupers and Poor Relief in New York City and Its Rural Environs, 1700–1830. By Robert E. Cray Jr. A House Divided: Sectionalism and Ciuil War, 1848–1865. [The American Moment Series.] By Richard H. Sewell. Embattled Courage: The Experience of Combat in the American Civil War. By Gerald F. Linderman. The Transformation of American Quakerism: Orthodox Friends, 1800–1907. By Thomas D. Hamm. Feud: Hatfields. McCoys, and Social Change in Appalachia, 1860–1900. By Altina L. Waller. Gilded Age Cato: The Life of Walter Q. Gresham. By Charles W. Calhoun. Badge and Buckshot: Lawlessness in Old California. By John Boessenecker. No Step Backward: Women and Family on the Rocky Mountain Mining Frontier, Helena, Montana, 1865–1900. By Paula Petrik. Heartland: Comparative Histories of the Midwestern States. [Midwestern History and Culture Series.] Edited by James H. Madison. The Presidencies of Grover Cleveland. [American Presidency Series.] By Richard E. Welch Jr. A History of Neglect: Health Care for Blacks and Mill Workers in the Twentieth‐Century South. By Edward H. Beardsley. Toward a New Deal in Baltimore: People and Government in the Great Depression. By Jo Ann E. Argersinger. Black Coal Miners in America: Race, Class, and Community Conflict, 1780–1980. By Ronald L. Lewis. Oliver Heaviside: Sage in Solitude. By Paul J. Nahin. Commander in Chief: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, His Lieutenants, and Their War. By Eric Larrabee. William Fulbright and the Vietnam War. By William C. Berman. The Cold War Begins in Asia. [Contemporary American History Series.] By Marc S. Gallicchio. Mexico through Russian Eyes, 1806–1940. By William Harrison Richardson.

Book Review: Anthony d'Agostino, Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev (London: Unwin Hyman, 1988, 274pp., £30.00)

Book Review: Anthony d'Agostino, Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev (London: Unwin Hyman, 1988, 274pp., £30.00)

Book Reviews : Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev by Anthony D'Agostino. London: Unwin Hyman, 1988. 274pp. £30.00. Eastern Europe, Gorbachev and Reform; The Great Challenge by Karen Dawisha. Cambridge University Press, 1988. 268pp., Hardback £22.50; Paperback £7.95

Book Reviews : Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev by Anthony D'Agostino. London: Unwin Hyman, 1988. 274pp. £30.00. Eastern Europe, Gorbachev and Reform; The Great Challenge by Karen Dawisha. Cambridge University Press, 1988. 268pp., Hardback £22.50; Paperback £7.95

Soviet succession struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian question from Lenin to Gorbachev

Soviet succession struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian question from Lenin to Gorbachev

Soviet Succession Struggles

Soviet Succession Struggles

The war will not subside: The Pacific theater in a NATO‐Warsaw Pact war

Abstract This paper considers the role of the Pacific theater in a NATO‐Warsaw Pact war. It argues that the Pacific theater has been neglected in such a conflict because most war scenarios envision a struggle lasting no more than 30 to 60 days. As a result, the conflict is over too quickly in most scenarios of the interrelationships between the NATO and Pacific theaters to develop conceptually. However, in a long‐war scenario, the Pacific theater's importance in the course and outcome of such a conflict becomes apparent. The military, industrial, and technological potential of the Pacific nations, especially China and Japan, combined with the U.S., constitute a reserve of strength capable of containing or reversing any Soviet success in a conventional conflict in Europe. This paper concludes that (1) current strategy or doctrine based on the refusal to repudiate the “first use” of nuclear weapons has lost much of its credibility as a deterrent, and (2) the tacit or explicit adoption of a long‐war strategy to counter Soviet capabilities in a short war should be considered.

Robert C. Tucker, Political Culture and Leadership in the Soviet Union From Lenin to Gorbachev. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1987. 214 pp. $22.50. - Anthony D'Agostino, Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1988. 274 pp. $45.00.

Robert C. Tucker, Political Culture and Leadership in the Soviet Union From Lenin to Gorbachev. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1987. 214 pp. $22.50. - Anthony D'Agostino, Soviet Succession Struggles: Kremlinology and the Russian Question from Lenin to Gorbachev. Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1988. 274 pp. $45.00.

Editor's Introduction

In the past, achievement in no other area of Soviet education has attracted as much attention, or prompted as great a response in the United States, as Soviet success in mathematics education. The Soviet capability to launch the first artificial earth satellite, Sputnik, in 1957 and the scientific and technological advances of the Soviet Union in the international arms race during the Cold War were largely credited to the mathematics and physics training of highly skilled Soviet manpower, (1) During the late 1950s and early 1960s, American science and mathematics teaching was overhauled and updated as part of our international competition with the USSR, under the aegis of the National Science Foundation and other agencies. Paradoxically, once the American education system embarked upon a course of improving the content of its school mathematics teaching, the Soviet education system underwent a major curriculum reform at all levels of primary and secondary schooling, a reform that, for a time, seemed fated to undo the achievement of apparent superiority in school mathematics teaching.