Misplaced Pages

Communist Russia

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
#85914

103-466: Communist Russia may refer to: Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , the biggest republic of the Soviet Union, 1918–1991 Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , commonly known as the Soviet Union, 1922–1991 See also [ edit ] All-Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) Soviet Russia (disambiguation) Topics referred to by

206-807: A new Constitution of Russia was adopted. On 29 May 1990, at his third attempt, Boris Yeltsin was elected the chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR . The Congress of People's Deputies of the Republic adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian SFSR on 12 June 1990, which was the beginning of the " War of Laws ", pitting the Soviet Union against the Russian Federation and other constituent republics. On 17 March 1991, an all-Russian referendum created

309-626: A tendency to relapse into stagnation." According to Edwin Bacon and Mark Sandle, authors of Brezhnev Reconsidered , the economy under Brezhnev was as dynamic as the economy presided over by Nikita Khrushchev, but this dynamism had stalled by the time Yuri Andropov , and subsequently Konstantin Chernenko , became General Secretary. Mark Harrison claims that the economic performance of the Brezhnev era has not been looked at objectively as analysis of

412-542: Is a term coined by Mikhail Gorbachev in order to describe the negative way in which he viewed the economic, political, and social policies of the Soviet Union that began during the rule of Leonid Brezhnev (1964–1982) and continued under Yuri Andropov (1982–1984) and Konstantin Chernenko (1984–1985). It is sometimes called the " Brezhnevian Stagnation " in English. During the period of Brezhnev's leadership,

515-643: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic ( Russian SFSR or RSFSR ), previously known as the Russian Soviet Republic and the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic , and unofficially as Soviet Russia , was an independent federal socialist state from 1917 to 1922, and afterwards

618-474: Is that the Soviet economy could not sustain its extensive growth patterns. Other explanations include: the lack of Soviet, and communist bloc, transparency with other nations hindering globalisation and misinterpretation of a "permanent" post–World War II economic boom leading to faulty economic decisions. He claims that the economic policies of Andropov, and Chernenko, had improved the economic situation in

721-470: The "Kosygin reform" , which aimed to reform the planned economy within a socialist framework. In a bid to improve the Soviet economy Kosygin copied some of the measures used in the Western Bloc , such as profit making , which Brezhnev agreed to as the Soviet economy was entering a period of low growth. Kosygin's reforms on agriculture gave considerable autonomy to the collective farms, giving them

824-573: The Azerbaijan SSR ( Azerbaijan ), Georgian SSR ( Georgia ) and Kazakh SSR ( Kazakhstan ) to the south. Roughly 70% of the area in the RSFSR consisted of broad plains , with mountainous tundra regions mainly concentrated in the east of Siberia with Central Asia and East Asia. The area is rich in mineral resources, including petroleum, natural gas, and iron ore. The Soviet government first came to power on 7 November 1917, immediately after

927-532: The Belovezh Accords . The document, consisting of a preamble and fourteen articles, stated that the Soviet Union no longer existed "as a subject of international law and geopolitical reality". However, based on the historical community of peoples and relations between the three states, as well as bilateral treaties, the desire for a democratic rule of law, the intention to develop their relations based on mutual recognition and respect for state sovereignty,

1030-737: The Communist Party of the Russian SFSR in the territory of Russia. On 6 November, he went further, banning the Communist Parties of the USSR and the RSFSR in the RSFSR. On 8 December 1991, at Viskuli near Brest (Belarus) , Yeltsin, Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk and Belarusian leader Stanislav Shushkevich signed the "Agreement on the Establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States", known in media as

1133-660: The Constitution of the Russian SFSR . By 1918, during the Russian Civil War , several states within the former Russian Empire had seceded, reducing the size of the country even more, although some were conquered by the Bolsheviks. The Russian famine of 1921–22 , also known as Povolzhye famine, killed an estimated 5 million, primarily affecting the Volga and Ural River regions. The economic impact of

SECTION 10

#1732771930086

1236-723: The First Congress of the Soviets of the USSR approved the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR , by which Russia was united with the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic , Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic and Transcaucasian Soviet Federal Socialist Republic into a single federal state, the Soviet Union. The treaty was included in the 1924 Soviet Constitution , adopted on 31 January 1924 by

1339-774: The Kazakh SSR (now Kazakhstan ) and Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic ( Kyrgyzstan ). The former Karakalpak Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic was transferred to the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic ( Uzbekistan ). The final name for the republic during the Soviet era was adopted by the Russian Constitution of 1937, which renamed it the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR). Just four months after Operation Barbarossa ,

1442-654: The Kuril Islands off the coast of East Asia, north of Japan , making them part of the RSFSR. The status of the southernmost Kurils, north of Hokkaido of the Japanese home islands remains in dispute with Japan and the United States following the peace treaty of 1951 ending the state of war. On 17 April 1946, the Kaliningrad Oblast – the north-eastern portion of the former Kingdom of Prussia ,

1545-692: The Russian flag , the Soviet Union was self-dissolved by the Soviet of the Republics on 26 December, which by that time was the only functioning parliamentary chamber of the All-Union Supreme Soviet (the other house, Soviet of the Union , had already lost the quorum after recall of its members by the several union republics). After the dissolution, Russia took full responsibility for all

1648-668: The Second Congress of Soviets of the USSR . One of the early ambitious economic plans of the Soviet government was GOELRO , Russian abbreviation for "State Commission for Electrification of Russia" ( Го сударственная комиссия по эл ектрификации Ро ссии), which sought to achieve total electrification of the entire country. Soviet propaganda declared the plan was basically fulfilled by 1931. The national power output per year stood at 1.9 billion kWh in Imperial Russia in 1913, and Lenin's goal of 8.8 billion kWh

1751-614: The Soviet state on 7 November [ O.S. 25 October] 1917. This happened immediately after the October Revolution toppled the interim Russian Provisional Government (most recently led by opposing democratic socialist Alexander Kerensky (1881–1970)) which had governed the new Russian Republic after the abdication of the Russian Empire government of the Romanov imperial dynasty of Tsar Nicholas II

1854-635: The Soviet form of government ), established citizenship of Russia and stated that the RSFSR shall retain the right of free secession from the Soviet Union. On 12 June 1991, Boris Yeltsin (1931–2007), supported by the Democratic Russia pro-reform movement, was elected the first and only President of the RSFSR, a post that would later become the Presidency of the Russian Federation . The August 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt in Moscow with

1957-762: The Ukrainian SSR . On 8 February 1955, Malenkov was officially demoted to deputy Prime Minister. As First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Nikita Khrushchev's authority was significantly enhanced by Malenkov's demotion. The Karelo-Finnish SSR was transferred back to the RSFSR as the Karelian ASSR in 1956. On 9 January 1957, Karachay Autonomous Oblast and Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic were restored by Khrushchev and they were transferred from

2060-565: The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia with protesters being dismissed from their jobs, beaten or arrested. Eight protesters held a demonstration in Red Square in Moscow and were subsequently imprisoned. A number of suspected dissidents had their homes and property searched and a group of Moscow lawyers specialised in defending people charged with anti-Soviet activity. Supporters of these meetings and demonstrations claimed that

2163-633: The Wehrmacht was quickly advancing through the Russian SFSR, and was approximately 10 miles (16 km) away from Moscow. However, after the defeat in the Battle of Moscow and the Soviet winter offensive , the Germans were pushed back. In 1942, the Wehrmacht entered Stalingrad . Despite a deadly five-month battle in which the Soviets suffered over 1,100,000 casualties, they achieved victory following

SECTION 20

#1732771930086

2266-636: The death of Brezhnev in November 1982, Yuri Andropov succeeded him as Soviet leader. Brezhnev's legacy was a Soviet Union that was much less dynamic than it had been when he assumed power in 1964. During Andropov's short rule, modest reforms were introduced; he died little more than a year later in February 1984. Konstantin Chernenko , his successor, continued much of Andropov's policies. The economic problems that began under Brezhnev persisted into these short administrations and scholars still debate whether

2369-400: The then existing Constitution of 1978 , and were retained as such in the subsequent 1993 Constitution of Russia . At a total of about 17,125,200 km (6,612,100 sq mi), the Russian SFSR was the largest of the fifteen Soviet republics, with its southerly neighbor, the Kazakh SSR , being second. The international borders of the RSFSR touched Poland on the west; Norway and Finland on

2472-722: The 1922 Treaty on the Creation of the Soviet Union) and established the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) as a loose replacement confederation. On 12 December, the agreement was ratified by the Supreme Soviet (the parliament of the Russian SFSR); therefore the Russian SFSR had renounced the Treaty on the Creation of the Soviet Union and de facto declared Russia's independence from the Soviet Union itself and

2575-404: The 1970s, which is a "highly respectable rate" of growth. Another point that Hanson makes is that, in contrast to the repressive policies of Joseph Stalin and instability-inducing policies of Khrushchev, the Brezhnev era was stable and a "period of (comparative) plenty". Robert Vincent Daniels in his book, Russia's Transformation: Snapshots of a Crumbling System , claimed that the hallmark of

2678-484: The American level, and the net current investment was actually greater in absolute terms". The failure then, according to Daniels, was that the Soviet economy was not able to deliver in certain sectors; agriculture is a sector where this failure occurred. Throughout Soviet history, deficiencies in agriculture and consumer goods always existed. During Brezhnev's reign, the Soviet Union became the largest producer of wheat in

2781-437: The Brezhnev era was the status quo , which in turn led to the development of a great paradox ; "the contradictions of what it was and what it could be became obvious". Net growth, in excess of 50% and as high as two thirds, was primarily in the urban sector resulting in high population growth and urban growth higher than that of the United States. Industrial development continued to grow rapidly, and in certain sectors surpassed

2884-532: The Civil War was devastating. A black market emerged in Russia, despite the threat of martial law against profiteering. The ruble collapsed, with barter increasingly replacing money as a medium of exchange and, by 1921, heavy industry output had fallen to 20% of 1913 levels. 90% of wages were paid with goods rather than money. 70% of locomotives were in need of repair , and food requisitioning, combined with

2987-596: The Communist Party restructured ( perestroika ) the Soviet economy and government by introducing quasi-capitalist ( Khozraschyot ) and democratic ( demokratizatsiya ) reforms. These were intended to re-energize the Soviet Union but inadvertently led to its dissolution in 1991. Robert Service , author of the History of Modern Russia: From Tsarism to the Twenty-first Century , claims that with mounting economic problems worker discipline decreased, which

3090-586: The Congress of People's Deputies of Russia approved the renaming of the RSFSR into the Russian Federation, by making appropriate amendments to the Constitution, which entered into force since publication on 16 May 1992. The Government was known officially as the Council of People's Commissars (1917–1946) and Council of Ministers (1946–1991). The first government was headed by Vladimir Lenin as Chairman of

3193-654: The Congress. At the same time, a number of prominent members of the Left Socialist Revolutionaries had assumed positions in Lenin's government and lead commissariats in several areas. This included agriculture ( Kolegaev ), property ( Karelin ), justice ( Steinberg ), post offices and telegraphs ( Proshian ) and local government (Trutovsky). Lenin's government also instituted a number of progressive measures such as universal education , healthcare and equal rights for women . On 25 January 1918, at

Communist Russia - Misplaced Pages Continue

3296-462: The Council of People's Commissars of the Russian SFSR and the last by Boris Yeltsin as both head of government and head of state under the title of president. The Russian SFSR was controlled by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union until the 1991 August coup , which prompted President Yeltsin to suspend the recently created Communist Party of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic . In

3399-607: The Georgian SSR back to the Russian SFSR . In 1964, Nikita Khrushchev was removed from his position of power and replaced with Leonid Brezhnev . Under his rule, the Russian SFSR and the rest of the Soviet Union went through a mass era of stagnation . Even after Brezhnev's death in 1982, the era did not end until Mikhail Gorbachev took power in March 1985 and introduced liberal reforms in Soviet society. On 12 April 1978,

3502-489: The RSFSR became an integral part of the economy of the USSR. The economic program of the RSFSR (NEP) was continued in all union republics. The Gosplan (State General Planning Commission) of the RSFSR, which replaced GOELRO, was reorganized into the Gosplan of the USSR. His early task was to develop a unified national economic plan based on the electrification plan and to oversee the overall implementation of this plan. Unlike

3605-466: The Soviet Union could only have been caused by internal problems rather than external. Some Marxist–Leninist writers have argued that economic stagnation was a result of revisionism in Soviet economic policy during Khrushchev's leadership. According to authors like Harpal Brar , Khrushchev's de-Stalinization program was also used to implement economic reforms that would move the USSR away from central planning and towards market socialism . One of

3708-455: The Soviet economy: an Economic History of the USSR from 1945 , claims that the label stagnation is not "entirely unfair". Brezhnev, according to Hanson, did preside over a period of slowdown in economic growth, but claims that the era started with good growth that was at a higher rate than during the end of Khrushchev's rule. Economic slowdown began in 1973 "when even the official estimates began to show Soviet per capita production no longer closing

3811-438: The Soviet leadership created the term developed socialism , which meant that the Soviet Union had developed to a sufficiently advanced stage that the country would move "naturally" to communism (in an unspecified amount of time). Khrushchev's dismissal led to the establishment of a more conservative Politburo; Kosygin, Nikolai Podgorny and Andrei Kirilenko were the most liberal members, Brezhnev and Arvīds Pelše belonged to

3914-591: The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Many regions in Russia were affected by the Soviet famine of 1932–1933 : Volga , Central Black Soil Region , North Caucasus , the Urals , the Crimea , part of Western Siberia , and the Kazakh ASSR . With the adoption of the 1936 Soviet Constitution on 5 December 1936, the size of the RSFSR was significantly reduced. The Kazakh ASSR and Kirghiz ASSR were transformed into

4017-439: The United States, and produced more "steel, oil, pig-iron, cement and ... tractors" than any other country in the world, Service treats the problems of agriculture during the Brezhnev era as proof of the need for de- collectivization . In short, Service considers the Soviet economy to have become "static" during this time period, and Brezhnev's policy of stability was a "recipe for political disaster". Richard Sakwa , author of

4120-546: The United States. As an example, coal production in the Soviet Union increased from 85 million metric tons in 1964 to 149 million metric tons in 1981 while in the United States it grew from 100 million to 130 million metric tons in the same period. The Soviet Union became the largest exporter of petroleum in the world and by the end of the Tenth Five-Year Plan (1976–1981) the Soviet GNP "reached about 60% of

4223-650: The arrests were illegal, because there is no criminality in the realization of the human right to obtain and distribute information. They asserted this right was part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the final act of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (1975). Throughout the Brezhnev Era, artists producing work in accordance with "Soviet values" within

Communist Russia - Misplaced Pages Continue

4326-528: The book The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union: 1917–1991 , takes a dimmer view of the Brezhnev era by claiming that growth rates fell "inexorably" from the 1950s until they stopped completely in the 1980s. His reasoning for this stagnation was the growing demand for unskilled workers resulted in a decline of productivity and labour discipline. Sakwa believes that stability itself led to stagnation and claimed that without strong leadership "Soviet socialism had

4429-409: The country and Mikhail Gorbachev inherited a more dynamic and vibrant economy in a "pre-crisis situation" where the economy was still growing with low internal and external debts, compared to the economy that Andropov and Chernenko inherited. Archie Brown , author of The Rise and Fall of Communism , claims in his book that the term Era of Stagnation "was in many ways a fitting description, for this

4532-489: The dates, significance and causes of the stagnation. Supporters of Gorbachev have criticised Brezhnev, and the Brezhnev administration in general, for being too conservative and failing to change with the times. After the death of Soviet leader Joseph Stalin in 1953, a program of policy change was begun, later known as de-Stalinization . Nikita Khrushchev , who succeeded Stalin's brief successor Georgy Malenkov as Soviet leader , introduced relatively liberal reforms during

4635-504: The denunciation of the union treaty was meaningless since it became invalid in 1924 with the adoption of the first constitution of the USSR . Although the 12 December vote is sometimes reckoned as the moment that the RSFSR seceded from the collapsing Soviet Union, this is not the case. It appears that the RSFSR took the line that it did not need to follow the secession process delineated in the Soviet Constitution because it

4738-461: The early 1970s. Kosygin's "radical" reform attempts were halted in 1971 and his second reform was more modest. The second reform was halted because of the 1973 oil crisis , when an international increase in the price of oil prompted economic growth based on selling oil. Another reform was implemented in 1979 but this, too, failed as by this time the Soviet economy had become "addicted" to high oil prices. Acts of protest took place in reaction to

4841-543: The economy. During the Nixon Shock and the 1973 oil crisis , economic growth in the rest of the world plummeted but the Soviet hard currency earnings grew as a result of oil exports. Following the crisis, overall economic activity decreased markedly in the Soviet Union, the Western Bloc and Japan , but in the Soviet Union it was much more pronounced. Kotz and Weir argued that ultimately, economic stagnation in

4944-476: The effects of seven years of war and a severe drought, contributed to a famine that caused between 3 and 10 million deaths. Coal production decreased from 27.5 million tons (1913) to 7 million tons (1920), while overall factory production also declined from 10,000 million roubles to 1,000 million roubles. According to the noted historian David Christian, the grain harvest was also slashed from 80.1 million tons (1913) to 46.5 million tons (1920). On 30 December 1922,

5047-559: The electricity produced in the Soviet Union. By 1961, it was the third largest producer of petroleum due to new discoveries in the Volga-Urals region and Siberia, trailing in production to only the United States and Saudi Arabia. In 1974, there were 475 institutes of higher education in the republic providing education in 47 languages to some 23,941,000 students. A network of territorially organized public-health services provided health care. The economy, which had become stagnant since

5150-459: The first years of the existence of the RSFSR, the doctrine of war communism became the starting point of the state's economic activity. In March 1921, at the X Congress of the RCP (B), the tasks of the policy of "war communism" were recognized by the country's leadership as fulfilled, and a new economic policy was introduced at Lenin's suggestion. After the formation of the Soviet Union, the economy of

5253-423: The formation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics during the Tenth All-Russian Congress of Soviets , the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, being a part of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, devolves to the Union the powers which according to Article 1 of the Constitution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics are included within the scope of responsibilities of the government bodies of

SECTION 50

#1732771930086

5356-413: The founding state of the German Empire (1871–1918) and later the German province of East Prussia including the capital and Baltic seaport city of Königsberg – was annexed by the Soviet Union and made part of the Russian SFSR. After the death of Joseph Stalin on 5 March 1953, Georgy Malenkov became the new leader of the USSR. In January 1954, Malenkov transferred Crimea from the Russian SFSR to

5459-471: The framework of socialist realism constituted a well-paid, elite group that enjoyed an easy life and high social status. Nevertheless, open and clandestine political opposition to the authorities by some Soviet scientists and artists (collectively known as "the dissidents" ) persisted from the Khrushchev Era. Prominent nuclear physicist Andrey Sakharov and Soviet Army General Pyotr Grigorenko were well-known representatives of this movement. When details of

5562-420: The gap with the US." Before 1973, there was a reform period launched by Alexei Kosygin , which many believed would become as radical as those in the Socialist Republic of Czechoslovakia and the previous reform attempts in Hungary . According to Hanson, many assumed that growth during the Brezhnev era did not stop but started to stagnate. Not everything stagnated, as per capita consumption grew by 1.9% during

5665-420: The government could not counter effectively because of the full employment policy. According to Service, this policy led to government industries, such as factories, mines and offices, being staffed by undisciplined and unproductive personnel ultimately leading to a "work-shy workforce" among Soviet workers and administrators. While the Soviet Union under Brezhnev had the "second greatest industrial capacity" after

5768-411: The increasing expenditure on the armed forces was stalling economic growth. David Michael Kotz and Fred Weir, authors of Revolution from Above: The Demise of the Soviet System , argue that militarisation cannot be the prime cause for the economic stagnation, as military spending had historically been high (17% of GNP in 1950) and had increased on par with economic growth without previously destabilising

5871-496: The interim Russian Provisional Government headed by Alexander Kerensky , which governed the Russian Republic , was overthrown in the October Revolution , the second of the two Russian Revolutions . The state it governed, which did not have an official name, would be unrecognized by neighboring countries for another five months. The initial stage of the October Revolution which involved the assault on Petrograd occurred largely without any human casualties . On 18 January 1918,

5974-411: The largest ethnic group . The capital of the Russian SFSR and the Soviet Union as a whole was Moscow and the other major urban centers included Leningrad (Petrograd until 1924), Stalingrad (Volgograd after 1961), Novosibirsk , Sverdlovsk , Gorky and Kuybyshev . It was the first socialist state in history. The economy of Russia became heavily industrialized, accounting for about two-thirds of

6077-480: The largest and most populous constituent republic of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1991, until becoming a sovereign part of the Soviet Union with priority of Russian laws over Union-level legislation in 1990 and 1991, the last two years of the existence of the Soviet Union. The Russian SFSR was composed of sixteen smaller constituent units of autonomous republics , five autonomous oblasts , ten autonomous okrugs , six krais and forty oblasts . Russians formed

6180-495: The late 1970s under General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev , began to be liberalized starting in 1985 under Gorbachev's " perestroika " restructuring policies, including the introduction of non-state owned enterprises (e.g. cooperatives). On 7 November 1917 ( O.S. 25 October), as a result of the October Revolution , the Russian Soviet Republic was proclaimed as a sovereign state and the world's first constitutionally socialist state guided by communist ideology . The first constitution

6283-444: The main causes for Khrushchev's dismissal from power was the relatively poor economic growth during the early 1960s. Overall economic growth was 6% from 1951 to 1955 but had fallen to 5.8% in the subsequent 5 years and to 5% from 1961 to 1965. Labour productivity, which had grown 4.7% from the 1950s to 1962, had declined to 4% by the early 1960s. Growth, capital out and investments were all showing signs of steady decline. Another problem

SECTION 60

#1732771930086

6386-399: The majority of the Soviet leadership. The reform-minded Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Government), Alexei Kosygin , introduced two modest reforms in the 1970s after the failure of his more radical 1965 reform , and attempted to reverse the trend of declining growth. By the 1970s, Brezhnev had consolidated enough power to stop any "radical" reform-minded attempts by Kosygin. After

6489-401: The moderate faction while Mikhail Suslov retained his leadership of the party's hardliners. Kosygin and Brezhnev strongly disagreed over economic policy; Kosygin wanted to increase investments in consumer goods and light industry whereas Brezhnev wanted to increase investment in heavy industry , agriculture and defence. In 1965, Kosygin introduced an economic reform, widely referred to as

6592-439: The nascent state of the Soviets of Workers' and Peasants' Deputies. Speakers of colloquial English coined the term "Bololand" to refer to the land of the Bolos (a term identified from 1919 onwards with the Bolsheviks). On 25 January 1918 the third meeting of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets proclaimed the establishment of the Russian Soviet Republic . In July 1918, the fifth All-Russian Congress of Soviets adopted both

6695-399: The new name, Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (RSFSR), and the Constitution of the Russian SFSR . Internationally, the Russian SFSR was recognized as an independent state in 1920 only by its bordering neighbors ( Estonia , Finland , Latvia and Lithuania ) in the Treaty of Tartu and by the short-lived Irish Republic of 1919–1922 in Ireland. On 30 December 1922, with

6798-438: The newly elected Constituent Assembly issued a decree, proclaiming Russia a democratic federal republic under the name "Russian Democratic Federal Republic". However, the Bolsheviks dissolved the Assembly on the following day and declared its decrees null and void. Conversely, the Bolsheviks also reserved a number of vacant seats in the Soviets and Central Executive for the opposition parties in proportion to their vote share at

6901-525: The northwest; and to its southeast in eastern Asia were the Democratic People's Republic of Korea ( North Korea ), Mongolian People's Republic ( Mongolia ) and the People's Republic of China (China, formerly the Republic of China ; 1911–1949). Within the Soviet Union, the RSFSR bordered the Slavic states: Ukrainian SSR ( Ukraine ), Belarusian SSR ( Belarus ), the Baltic states: Estonian SSR ( Estonia ), Latvian SSR ( Latvia ) and Lithuanian SSR ( Lithuania ) (Included in USSR in 1940) to its west and

7004-423: The parties agreed to the formation of the Commonwealth of Independent States . On 12 December, the agreement was ratified by the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR by an overwhelming majority: 188 votes for, 6 against and 7 abstentions. The legality of this ratification raised doubts among some members of the Russian parliament, since according to the Constitution of the RSFSR of 1978 consideration of this document

7107-752: The period known as the Khrushchev Thaw . This period also brought an economic increase that topped at 6%. The Manege Affair of 1962, during which Khrushchev publicly criticised an exhibition of Soviet art , led to the reassertion of Communist Party control over the arts and marked the beginning of the end of the Cultural Thaw . Brezhnev replaced Khrushchev as Soviet leader in 1964. The Brezhnev Era (1964–1982) began with high economic growth and soaring prosperity, but gradually significant problems in social, political, and economic areas accumulated. Social stagnation began following Brezhnev's rise to power, when he revoked several of Khrushchev's reforms and partially rehabilitated Stalinist policies. Some commentators regard

7210-428: The period sometimes used lower estimates. Harrison further claims that in the period between 1928 and 1973 the Soviet economy grew in a phase that would surpass the United States "one day". During the international oil crisis , growth in the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc halted abruptly and stalled for a longer period than in the West causing the economy to begin stagnating. One explanation, according to Harrison,

7313-449: The point of view of communist rulers, the Brezhnev era was in many ways successful". The Soviet Union's natural resources provided a strong economic foundation, which bore fruit during the 1973 oil crisis and "turned out to be an energy bonanza". On the other hand, Brown states it was a sign of weakness that the Soviet Union grew so dependent on its natural resources, as it did in the 1970s. Philip Hanson, author of The Rise and Fall of

7416-489: The policy of stability. The majority of scholars set the starting year for economic stagnation at 1975, although some claim that it began as early as the 1960s. Industrial growth rates declined during the 1970s as heavy industry and the arms industry were prioritized while Soviet consumer goods were neglected. The value of all consumer goods manufactured in 1972 in retail prices was about 118 billion roubles . Historians, scholars, and specialists are uncertain what caused

7519-533: The post of President of the RSFSR and on 12 June, Boris Yeltsin was elected president by popular vote . During the unsuccessful 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt of 19–21 August 1991 in Moscow , the capital of the Soviet Union and Russia, Yeltsin strongly supported the President of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev. On 23 August, Yeltsin, in the presence of Gorbachev, signed a decree suspending all activity by

7622-413: The previous March (Old Style: February). The October Revolution was thus the second of the two Russian Revolutions of the turbulent year of 1917. Initially, the new Soviet state did not have an official name and was not recognized by neighboring countries for five months. Anti-Bolsheviks soon suggested new names, however. By 1919 they had coined the mocking label Sovdepia ( Russian : Совдепия ) for

7725-594: The previous Russian constitutions, the 1978 Constitution devoted an entire chapter (Chapter II) to the description of the economic system of the RSFSR, which defined the types of property and indicated the goals of the economic tasks of the state. Era of Stagnation First , then General Secretary of the CPSU 1964–1982 Brezhnev Era Foreign policy [REDACTED] The " Era of Stagnation " ( Russian : Пери́од засто́я , romanized :  Períod zastóya , or Эпо́ха засто́я Epókha zastóya )

7828-405: The rapid growth of the shadow economy. It is suggested that failure to account for it by Gosplan contributed to the stagnation, and ultimately to the collapse of the Soviet economy . One of the suggested causes of stagnation was the increased military expenditure over consumer goods and other economic spheres. Andrei Sakharov , the veteran dissident, claimed in a 1980 letter to Brezhnev that

7931-455: The reform policies that were followed improved the economic situation in the country. The Era of Stagnation ended with Gorbachev's rise to power during which political and social life was democratised even though the economy was still stagnating. Under Gorbachev's leadership the Communist Party began efforts to accelerate economic development in 1985 through massive injections of finance into heavy industry ( Uskoreniye ) . When these failed,

8034-578: The right to the contents of private farming. As a result, during the Eighth Five-Year Plan (1966–1970), large-scale land reclamation programmes, construction of irrigation channels, and other measures, were enacted. Overall, the reform failed and links to any high growth rates during the Eighth Five-Year Plan are considered to be "tenuous". The Brezhnev era, which had begun with high growth, began to stagnate some time in

8137-608: The rights and obligations of the Soviet Union under the Charter of the United Nations, including the financial obligations. As such, Russia assumed the Soviet Union's UN membership and permanent membership on the Security Council , nuclear stockpile and the control over the armed forces; Soviet embassies abroad became Russian embassies. The 1978 constitution of the Russian SFSR was amended several times to reflect

8240-405: The rights and obligations of the USSR under the Charter of the United Nations, including the financial obligations, and assumed control over its nuclear stockpile and the armed forces; Soviet embassies abroad became Russian embassies. On 25 December – just hours after Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union – the Russian SFSR was renamed the Russian Federation (Russia), reflecting that it

8343-512: The same borders of the old Tsardom of Russia before the Great Northern War of 1700 to 1721. The RSFSR dominated the Soviet Union to a significant extent. For most of its existence, the Soviet Union was commonly (but incorrectly) referred to as "Russia". While the RSFSR itself was only one republic within the larger union, it was the largest, most powerful and most highly developed of the 15 republics. According to Matthew White it

8446-429: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Communist Russia . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Communist_Russia&oldid=1074577207 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

8549-437: The stagnation, with some arguing that the command economy suffered from systemic flaws that inhibited growth. Others have argued that the lack of reform, or the high expenditures on the military, led to stagnation. Brezhnev has been criticised posthumously for doing too little to improve the economic situation. Throughout his rule, no major reforms were initiated and the few proposed reforms were either very modest or opposed by

8652-620: The start of social stagnation as being the Sinyavsky–Daniel trial in 1966, in which two writers were convicted of anti-Soviet agitation and which marked the end of the Khrushchev Thaw. Others place it at the time of the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 that suppressed the Prague Spring . The period's political stagnation is associated with the establishment of gerontocracy , which came into being as part of

8755-630: The surrender of the last German troops near the Volga River , ultimately pushing German forces out of Russia by 1944. In 1943, Karachay Autonomous Oblast was dissolved by Joseph Stalin (1878–1953), General Secretary of the Communist Party , later Premier, when the Karachays were exiled to Central Asia for their alleged collaboration with the invading Germans in the Great Patriotic War ( World War II , 1941–1945), and territory

8858-491: The temporary brief internment of President Mikhail Gorbachev destabilised the Soviet Union. Following these events, Gorbachev lost all his remaining power, with Yeltsin superseding him as the pre-eminent figure in the country. On 8 December 1991, the heads of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus signed the Belovezha Accords . The agreement declared dissolution of the USSR by its original founding states (i.e., renunciation of

8961-428: The term "Era of Stagnation" was not used. Instead in Soviet ideology the term "period of developed socialism " ( Russian : пери́од развито́го социали́зма ) was used for the period that started in 1967. This Soviet concept was officially declared at the 24th Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1971. It stemmed from the failure of Khrushchev's promise in 1961 of reaching communism in 20 years and

9064-736: The third meeting of the All-Russian Congress of Soviets , the establishment of the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (RSFSR) was proclaimed. On 3 March 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed, giving away much of the westernmost lands of the former Russian Empire to the German Empire , in exchange for peace on the Eastern Front of World War I. In July 1918, the fifth All-Russian Congress of Soviets adopted

9167-595: The ties with the other Soviet republics. On 25 December 1991, following the resignation of Gorbachev as President of the Soviet Union (and former General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union ), the Russian SFSR was renamed the Russian Federation . The next day, after the lowering of the Soviet flag from the top of the Senate building of the Moscow Kremlin and its replacement by

9270-457: The transition to democracy, private property and market economy. The new Russian constitution , coming into effect on 25 December 1993 after a constitutional crisis , completely abolished the Soviet form of government and replaced it with a semi-presidential system . Under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin (1870–1924) and Leon Trotsky (1879–1940), the Bolshevik communists established

9373-706: The treaty on the creation of the Soviet Union , Russia (the RSFSR), alongside the Transcaucasian SFSR, the Ukrainian SSR and the Byelorussian SSR, formed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics . The final Soviet name for the constituent republic, the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, was adopted in the later Soviet Constitution of 1936 . By that time, Soviet Russia had gained roughly

9476-425: The world but was unable to produce meat in sufficient quantities. According to Daniels, the economy began to stagnate in 1975 rather than 1973 and that the following period contradicted the previous one "in almost every way". The research in second economy of the Soviet Union , pioneered by Gregory Grossman , indicated that during 1970s-1980s the effects of the central planning were progressively distorted due to

9579-478: Was Khrushchev's unrealistic promises such as committing to reach communism in 20 years , a near impossibility with the then-current economic indicators. Ultimately, as a result of his failure to deliver on his promises and the problems engendered, Khrushchev was dismissed in October 1964 by a collective leadership led by Leonid Brezhnev and Alexei Kosygin . To counter Khrushchev's promise of reaching communism,

9682-487: Was a period of declining growth", but noted it could be misleading in non-economic spheres. Brown states there were high growth rates in the mid-to-late 1960s (during the Eighth Five-Year Plan ) claiming that the Soviet economy "enjoyed stronger growth in the second half of the 1960s than it ever did thereafter". The link between these growth rates and the Kosygin reform is, according to Brown, "tenuous", but says that "From

9785-405: Was a replacement for the concept "period of the extensive construction of communism" ( Russian : период развёрнутого строительства коммунизма ). It was in the 1980s that the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev coined the term "Era of Stagnation" to describe the economic difficulties that developed when Leonid Brezhnev led the Soviet Union from 1964 to 1982 . Scholars have subsequently disagreed on

9888-521: Was adopted in 1918. In 1922, the Russian SFSR signed a treaty officially creating the Soviet Union. The Russian SFSR's 1978 constitution stated that "[a] Union Republic is a sovereign [...] state that has united [...] in the Union" and "each Union Republic shall retain the right freely to secede from the USSR". On 12 June 1990, the Congress of People's Deputies adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty , established separation of powers (unlike in

9991-406: Was an open secret that the country's federal structure was "window dressing" for Russian dominance. On 25 December 1991, during the collapse of the Soviet Union , which concluded on the next day, the RSFSR's official name was changed to the Russian Federation , which it remains to this day. This name and "Russia" were specified as the official state names on 21 April 1992, in an amendment to

10094-428: Was in the exclusive jurisdiction of the Congress of People's Deputies of the RSFSR . However, by this time the Soviet government had been rendered more or less impotent, and was in no position to object. On the same day, the Supreme Soviet of the Russian SFSR denounced the Treaty on the Creation of the USSR and recalled all Russian deputies from the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. A number of lawyers believe that

10197-643: Was incorporated into the Georgian SSR . On 3 March 1944, on the orders of Stalin, the Chechen-Ingush ASSR was disbanded and its population forcibly deported upon the accusations of collaboration with the invaders and separatism . The territory of the ASSR was divided between other administrative units of Russian SFSR and the Georgian SSR. On 11 October 1944, the Tuvan People's Republic

10300-609: Was joined with the Russian SFSR as the Tuvan Autonomous Oblast , becoming an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in 1961. After reconquering Estonia and Latvia in 1944, the Russian SFSR annexed their easternmost territories around Ivangorod and within the modern Pechorsky and Pytalovsky Districts in 1944–1945. At the end of World War II Soviet troops of the Red Army occupied southern Sakhalin Island and

10403-586: Was not possible to secede from a country that no longer existed. On 24 December, Yeltsin informed the Secretary-General of the United Nations that by agreement of the member states of the CIS the Russian Federation would assume the membership of the Soviet Union in all UN organs (including the Soviet Union's permanent seat on the UN Security Council ). Russia took full responsibility for all

10506-437: Was now a sovereign state with Yeltsin assuming the Presidency . That same night, the Soviet flag was lowered and replaced with the tricolor . The Soviet Union officially ceased to exist the next day. The change was originally published on 6 January 1992 ( Rossiyskaya Gazeta ). According to law, during 1992, it was allowed to use the old name of the RSFSR for official business (forms, seals, and stamps). On 21 April 1992,

10609-420: Was reached in 1931. National power output continued to increase significantly. It reached 13.5 billion kWh by the end of the first five-year plan in 1932, 36 billion kWh by 1937, and 48 billion kWh by 1940. Paragraph 3 of Chapter 1 of the 1925 Constitution of the RSFSR stated the following: By the will of the peoples of the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, who decided on

#85914