If so, how? The only way it could've survived is by reforming directly after World War II; even reforming in the 1950's or early 1960's greatly increases the Soviet Unions chances of survival. What should the Soviets have done differently to ensure their future survival and prosperity? Therefore, the Soviet Union in comparison to China did not possess a common history to which Soviet nationalism could arise. The Soviet Union actually was winning the cold war until the mid 1960’s. If we're referring to the usual metric for measuring economic success, namely things like GDP growth, China wins. The result of the war can be determined by many factors. A forum dedicated to Dr. Jordan B. Peterson and his ideas. Could the USSR have survived to the present day, perhaps a more practical approach to reform by Gorbachev? The Soviet Union could not have survived, because by 1991 the Communist Party had lost control of the media and thus the public sphere. What significant change could the leaders of the union have made from 1947-1990 that would make it win the cold war or make it survive to this day? Look at the Iranian demonstrations in 2009. Just like the title says: Could the Soviet union survive with a planned economy? This thread is archived. And still retain superpower status? I do not believe that the Soviet Union would have survived even with a capitalistic society. A decade of Stalin’s purges had all but decimated the leadership of the Soviet military, and despite carefully worded pleas to upgrade equipment and fortifications from the remaining Soviet general staff, Stalin ignored these requests. They are not going to agree quic… Could the Soviet Union Have Survived? Key to the survival of any dictatorship is strict control of the media, which shapes public opinion and promotes tacit acceptance of a regime. 81% Upvoted. The 1991 was the last straw on a series of disastrous events. Starting in 1945, but the later the better. Newer Post Older Post Home. In 1969, a Soviet dissident named Andrei Amalrik wrote an essay called “Will the Soviet Union Survive Until 1984?” It predicted the demise of the Soviet system, most likely in a conflict with China. It’s likely, Taubman says, that the Soviet Union could have survived for a number of years, but it would have grown weaker and more decrepit. Predictions of the Soviet Union's impending demise were discounted by many Western academic specialists, and had little impact on mainstream Sovietology. Could the Soviet Union have won the Cold War? 0 comments. Some people did expect it, but many (probably most) did not. The Soviet Union could not have survived, because by 1991 the Communist Party had lost control of the media and thus the public sphere. Could the Soviet Union Have Survived into the 21st Century? 2. The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), was a federal socialist state in Northern Eurasia that existed from 1922 to 1991. That might have spurred ever greater backlash and outright rebellion, but the Soviet government couldn't properly use soft power to compete for the people of the Soviet Union and the people of the Warsaw Pact.--Next, predictions of the fall of the Soviet Union. Putin’s politic proves that the old USSR was salvageable. ‘No one has suggested a convincing alternative scenario’ Rodric Braithwaite, British Ambassador to the Soviet Union (1988-91) and author of Armageddon and Paranoia: the Nuclear Confrontation (Profile, 2017). If it had not been for that coup, it would have been for something else. and could it have survived with the point of divergence being in the 1980s? No, the Soviet Union would not have survived even with a capitalist society. For background, the Soviet Union was in no shape to fight a protracted war in 1941, at the outset of Operation Barbarossa. The Soviet Union, I think, could have survived up to the present day if they had stayed on their old Brezhnev-era way. What would have been the impact of the Soviet Union not collapsing? How the 2020 pandemic has permanently changed retail. Or at the least, could the Soviet Union have survived until today, and remained a viable competitor to the United States while celebrating the 100th … Virus-depleted Broncos have historically bad day. Email This BlogThis! The problem of the Soviet Union was not arms race, and not, by the way, lowering of oil prices in the 80’s. Could the Soviet Union have won the Cold War? Share to Twitter Share to Facebook Share to Pinterest. Military strength (Armament & personnel) 2. 3. Things are hard there. Conventional wisdom discounting a collapse U.S. analysts. The reason the Soviet Union didn't survive was because the United States of America was just too powerful in terms of the foreign stage. The “what if” discussions about the end of the Soviet Union are still reverberating across Russia. Alternately I could see The Soviet Union become a confederation lacking leadership at the national level, individual republics start having more say so over policy in their jurisdiction. Look at Tienamen Square. Could the Soviet Union Have Survived into the 21st Century? Sure, both problems were important, but not to the extent as generally thought. Perhaps economically liberalised like China and but still a one party state, perhaps still holding its eastern satellites perhaps not. The USSR could've survived. There's a difference, and you should know that. I would like to explain in detail the factors so that you can decide for yourself. Key point: Moscow could have played its hand much better. For example, Amalrik's book "was welcomed as a piece of brilliant literature in the West" but "virtually no one tended to take it at face value as a piece of political prediction." The breakup of the Soviet Union in December 1991 was arguably one of the most pivotal and surprising events of the twentieth century. Hitler could have just ramped up the naval and air war against the British after, but the war expanded to include the Balkans and North African...plus Hitler's dream was taking over the Soviet Union. Samuel Bendett, National Interest: Could the Soviet Union Have Survived into the 21st Century? You can't fire someone when your manpower is already too limited as it is. Nightmarish. share. Gorby wasn't the guy to get it done. Regimes can survive if they're willing to be brutal. Nikita Khrushchev: "I would like to express my candid opinion about Stalin’s views on whether the Red Army and the Soviet Union could have coped with Nazi Germany and survived the war without aid from the United States and Britain. PLANNED, not Command economics. The Soviet Union could not have survived, because by 1991 the Communist Party had lost control of the media and thus the public sphere. How could the soviet union have survived? New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Amalrik, as it turned out, was wrong about a war with China, but he was only off about the end of the USSR by a few years. Key to the survival of any dictatorship is strict control of the media, which shapes public opinion and promotes tacit acceptance of a regime. It was a lot more stable than people think it was and the system was well-liked by most people who were in the Soviet Union. The USSR could have survived very easily; 1988-92 wasn’t the first time the legitimacy of the Soviet government was challenged by aggrieved parties with legitimate complaints. On the other end were those who believed that if sweeping reforms were undertaken, the USSR could have been saved. The "Marshall Winter" is one of them. Or at the least, could the Soviet Union have survived until today, and remained a viable competitor to the United States while celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution in 2017, or the centennial of the founding of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 2022? But in each you have regimes holding onto power brutally. It had successfully taken nearly half of Europe and made it part of the Warsaw Pact. 1. https://ift.tt/30BzF1t Posted by logoi at 01:33. The “what if” discussions about the end of the Soviet Union are still reverberating across Russia. Key to the survival of any dictatorship is strict control of the media, which shapes public opinion and promotes tacit acceptance of a regime. Or at the least, could the Soviet Union have survived until today, and remained a viable competitor to the United States while celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revolution in 2017, or the centennial of the founding of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics in 2022? Jun 10, 2012 #28 save. Look at Cuba. Or failing that, what would have it taken for the USSR to survive with a planned economy, or what would have it taken for the USSR to survive from the 1980s-90s? Look at North Korea. report. Hence, the Soviet Union had the opposite problem from countries like the UK or the US. 9.1k members in the Maps_of_Meaning community. Putin has been recreating a sort of a Soviet-Union-with-shopping-malls-instead-of-Communism for some time now, and had a lot of success with it. 1. People still argue about the fall of the Roman Empire. You could see different parts of the country with insanely different levels of development. hide. 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