The Costs of the Soviet Empire

A comprehensive framework is developed and applied to estimate the economic costs incurred by the Soviet Union in acquiring, maintaining, and expanding its empire. The terms ``empire'' and ``costs'' are explicitly defined. Between 1971 and 1980, the average ratio between empire c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inScience (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 230; no. 4729; pp. 997 - 1002
Main Author Wolf, Charles
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States The American Association for the Advancement of Science 29.11.1985
American Association for the Advancement of Science
Subjects
Cost estimates
Cost estimation models
Dollar averaging
Economic costs
Economic growth rate
Finance
Gross national product
Hard currency
Imperialism
International trade
Maintenance costs
Military occupation
Military policy
Military spending
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Summary:A comprehensive framework is developed and applied to estimate the economic costs incurred by the Soviet Union in acquiring, maintaining, and expanding its empire. The terms ``empire'' and ``costs'' are explicitly defined. Between 1971 and 1980, the average ratio between empire costs and Soviet gross national product was about 3.5 percent; as a ratio to Soviet military spending, empire costs averaged about 28 percent. The burden imposed on Soviet economic growth by empire costs is also considered, as well as rates of change in these costs, and the important political, military, and strategic benefits associated by the Soviet leadership with maintenance and expansion of the empire. Prospective empire costs and changes in Soviet economic constraints resulting from the declining performance of the domestic economy are also considered.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
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ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.230.4729.997