New Directions in Soviet Economic Policy

»Tr«HE launching in the Soviet Union of the artificial earth I satellite and our own preoccupation with questions of inter•* planetary travel and technical weapons have distracted our attention from another event in Soviet Russia. In July, 1957, only a few months prior to the launching of the sputnik, Mr. Khrushchev launched upon one of the most far-reaching reorganizations of the Soviet economy. In fact, his reform is the fourth major about-face in Soviet economic policies. Lenin's attempt to do away with money altogether (1920-1921), his reintroduction of money and markets after the collapse of the former experiment (1921-27), and the policy under Stalin of controlling the bulk of Soviet firms from Moscow (1928-1957), are now to be followed by a wholesale scrapping of central ministries in favour of territorial areas, each of which is to be run by a separate board of directors. This new variant of Soviet economic administration will no doubt affect Soviet policies both at home and abroad and deserves serious attention

Development economics · Economic system · Economics · Political economy · Political science · Russia and Soviet political economy