Security dimensions of Soviet territorial disputes with China and Japan

The advent of Mikhail Gorbachev’sNew Thinking has produce a Soviet strategy toward East Asia that seeks a détente with China and Japan. An essential part of this task involves settling the territorial disputes that both countries have with the USSR. Present negotiations on the Sino-Soviet border have produced compromises, yet differences remain. Intractable positions by Japan and the USSR on the Northern Territories issue have resulted in a standstill that has prevented formal negotiations. This article analyzes the strategic-miliatary choices that Soviet leaders will have to make as they address the territorial disputes, examine possible compromises and their consequences for Soviet security, and assess the overall prospects for settlement. Rajan Menon is associate professor of international relations at Lehigh University and author ofSoviet Power and the Third World (Yale University Press, 1986). During the 1989⊋ash;90 academic year he is serving as a research scholar at the Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and as a Council on Foreign Relations international affairs fellow on the staff of Congressman Stephen J. Solarz (D-NY).     

The Quality of Gorbachev's Leadership

A prominent political scientist, identified with views expressing reservations about the success of Gorbachev's policies, briefly evaluates the quality of his leadership. The paper's focus is a response to a different assessment of that leadership by George W. Breslauer, published in an earlier issue of Soviet Economy. The author argues that during 1990 Gorbachev has lost most of the support he once enjoyed within both the Soviet populace and the Soviet political elite. He presents evidence that, during fall 1990, a right-wing coalition opposed to Gorbachev's policies was asserting itself. The essay covers developments through the end of November 1990. journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 124, 822.     

Soviet works on Middle Eastern minorities

V.I. Dyamlov, ’Natsional'niye myenshinstva i natsional'naya burdzhuaziya Yegipta (pyervaya polovina XXv.)‘

Arabskiye strani: istoriya i sovryemyennosC, Arab Countries: History and Present

(Moscow: Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, 1981; 248 pp.).

M.A. Rodionov's book is Maroniti: Iz etnokonfyessional'noy istorii Vostochnogo Sryedizyemnomor'ya, The Maronites: APart of the Ethno‐Confessional History of the Eastern Mediterranean (Moscow: Nauka Press for the Institute of Ethnography of the Academy

of Sciences of the Soviet Union, 1982; 136 pp.).

Z.A. Myentyeshashvili's Byerbyeri v obshchyestvyenno‐politichyeskoy dzhizni Marokko (50–70‐ye godi XX v.), The Berbers in Morocco's Socio‐political Life, the 1950s to the 1970s

(Moscow: Nauka Press for the Tiflis State University, 1985; 152 pp.).

Kurdskoye dvidzhyeniye v novoye i novyeyshye vryemya, The Kurdish Movement in Modern and Contemporary Times (Moscow: Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Armenian Soviet Republic, 1987; 301 pp.)

Natsional'noye dvidzhyeniye Kurdov v Iranye (1918–1947 gg.), The National Movement of the Kurds in Iran, 1918–47 (Moscow: Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, 1988; 168 pp.), by O.I. Dzhigalina

Present‐Day Asia: Ethno‐Cultural and National‐Political Processes (Moscow: Nauka Press for the Institute of Ethnography of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, 1989; 173 pp.).     

Some Soviet works on Islam

N. A. Smirnov's Ochyerki istorii izucheniya Mama v SSSR (Essays on the study of Islam in the Soviet Union), Moscow, The Soviet Academy of Sciences’ Press, 1954; 276 pp.

Large Soviet Encyclopaedia (in Russian, 2nd edition, Moscow, 1953).

Soviet Historical Encyclopaedia (in Russian, Moscow, 1965).

1. E. A. Belyayev's Araby, Islam i Arabskiy Khalifat v rannyeye Sryednyevyekov'ye (The Arabs, Islam and the Arab Caliphate in the early Middle Ages), Moscow, Nauka Press, 1965; 280 pp.

2. I. M. Fil'shtinskiy and B. Ya. Shidfar's Ochyerk Arabo‐Musul'manskoy KuVtury (VII‐XII vv.) (An essay on Arabo‐Muslim culture from the seventh to the twelfth centuries), Moscow, Soviet Academy of Sciences – Nauka Press, 1971; 260 pp.

3. I. P. Pyetrushyevskiy's Islam v Iranye v VII‐XV vyekakh (Islam in Iran from the seventh to the fifteenth centuries), Leningrad University's Publishing House, 1966; 400 pp.

A. M. Vasil'yev, Puritanye Islama? Vahhabizmipyervoyegosudarstvo Sauditov v Arabii {Jlie Puritans of Islam ? Wahhabism and the first state of the Sa'uds in Arabia), Moscow, Nauka Press, 1967; 264 pp.

L. I. Klimovich's Islam (in Russian), 2nd enlarged edition, Soviet Academy of Sciences – Nauka Press, 1965; 335 pp.

R. R. Mavlyutov's Islam (in Russian), Moscow, The Political Literature Press, 1969; 160 pp.

D. A. Patrushyev's Islam i ego reyaktsionnaya sushchnos’ (Islam and its reactionary nature), Moscow, Znaniye Press, 1960; 32 pp.

M. V. Vagabov, it is named Islam i dzyenshchina (Islam and woman), Moscow, Mysl’ Press, 1968; 231 pp.

Kul't svyatykh v Islamye {Saint‐worship in Islam), by V. N. Basilov, Moscow, Mysl’ Press, 1970; 144 pp.

Nugman Ashirov's Evolyutsya Mama v SSSR (The evolution of Islam in the Soviet Union),’ Moscow, The Political Literature Press, 1972; 152 pp.     

Ijtihad into philosophy: Islam as cultural heritage in post-Stalinist Daghestan

Starting in 1960, authors of various Daghestani nationalities initiated a re-evaluation of the role of Islam in the history of Daghestan. An important historical personality to draw upon was Muhammad al-Quduqi, a Daghestani Islamic legal scholar of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Quduqi was known for his sympathies towards ijtihad (Islamic legal reasoning by analogy) and for his call to replace customary law by Islamic law. This article studies how Quduqi was brought back into Soviet discourse in 1960, and how his advocacy for ijtihad was subsequently interpreted in Marxist terms as a quest for philosophy, rationalism and progress, with secularizing terms drawn from the discourse of Daghestani Jadids of the 1920s and 1930s. A comparison is then made with Soviet Tatarstan, where Marxist historians constructed a similar autochthonous trajectory of Tatar-Islamic progress and enlightenment. In both cases, Islamic concepts were taken out of context and used for the construction of a secularized national Muslim cultural heritage (miras) that would prepare the ground for socialism – with the difference that in Daghestan, this Muslim Mirasism was multi-ethnic in character.     

The first map of modern Egypt Mohammed Ali's firman and the map of 1841

Afganistan, Part I (Moscow, All‐Russian Scholarly Association for Orientalism, 1923; 205 pp.)

D. Anuchina and others; I. M. Ryeysnyer,

Afganistan (Moscow, The Communist Academy Press; 267 pp.)

V. A. Gurko‐Kryadzhin, Sovryemyenniy Afganistan, Contemporary Afghanistan (Moscow, Museum of Eastern Cultures, 1929; 15 pp.)

Yevgyeniy Shuan, Dzhang. Vosstaniye v Afganistanye, Dzhang: Revolt in Afghanistan (Leningrad, Priboy, 1930; 248 pp.)

V. M. Masson and V. A. Romodin, Istoriya Afganistana, History of Afghanistan, 2 vols. (Moscow, Nauka Press, 1964–5).

M. A. Babakhdzhayev, is entitled Bor'ba Afganistana za nyezavisimost’ (1838–1842), Afghanistan's War for Independence, 1838–42 (Moscow, Oriental Literature Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1960; 107 pp.).

N. Khalfin's Proval Brhanskoy agressii v Afganistanye (19 v. — nachalo 20 v.), The Downfall of British Aggression in Afghanistan, 19th‐Early 20^th Centuries (Moscow, Socio‐economic Literature Press, 1959; 211 pp.).

M. G. Pikulin, entitled Ochyerki po novoy istorii Afganistana, Essays about Afghanistan's Modern History (Tashkent, Fan Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, 1966; 143 pp.).

R. T. Akhramovich's Outline History of Afghanistan After the Second World War (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1966; 192 pp.)

Afganistan v 1961–1966 gg, Afghanistan in the Years 1961–66 (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1967; 172 pp.).

E. Nukhovich's Vnyeshnaya politika Afganistana, The Foreign Policy of Afghanistan (Moscow, Institute of International Relations Press, 1962; 108 pp.).

A. Kh. Babakhodzhayev's Ochyerki po istorii Sovyetsko‐Afganskikh otnoshyeniy, Essays about the History of Soviet‐Afghan Relations (Tashkent, Fan Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, 1970; 92 pp.).

L. B. Tyeplinskiy's 50 lyet Sovyetsko‐Afganskikh otnoshyeniy, Fifty Years of Soviet‐Afghan Relations (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studie of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1971, 238 pp.).

Sovyetsko‐Afganskiye otnoshyeniya 1919–1960, Soviet‐Afghan Relations, 1919–1960 (Moscow, Socio‐Economic Literature Press, 1961, 215 pp.).

N. M. Guryevich, Ochyerki istorii torgovogo kapitala v Afganistanye, Essays on the History of Trade Capital in Afghanistan (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1967; 143 pp.).

Pikulin's Razvitiye naisional'noy ekonomiki i kulturi Afghanistana 1955–1960, Development of the National Economy and Culture of Afghanistan, 1955–60 (Tashkent, The Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences Press, 1961; 152 pp.)

Voprosi ekonomiki Afganistana, Problems of Afghanistan's Economics (Moscow, Oriental Literature Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1963; 248 pp.)

A. A. Polyak, Ekonomichyeskiy stroy Afganistana (ochyerki), The Economic System of Afghanistan: Essays (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1964; 164 pp.)

N.I. Chyernyakhovskaya, Razvitiye promishlyennosti I polodzhyeniye rabochyego klassa Afganistana, Development of Industry and Working Class Conditions in Afghanistan (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1965; 171 pp.).

Guryevich, Ochyerki istorii torgovogo kapitala v Afganistanye, Essays on the History of Trade Capital in Afghanistan (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1967; 143 pp.).

Yu. M. Golovin's Afganistan, ekonomika i vnyeshnyaya torgovlya, Afghanistan: Economics and Foreign Commerce (Moscow, Foreign Commerce Press, 1962; 168 pp.).

V. A. Pulyarkin's Afganistan, ekonomichyeskaya gyeografiya, Afghanistan: Economic Geography (Moscow, Misl’ Press, 1964; 256 pp.).

Ryeysnyer, Razvitiye fyeodalizma i obrazovanye gosudarstva u Afgantsyev, The Development of Feudalism and Formation of Government by the Afghans (Moscow, The Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences Press, 1954; 416 pp.)

A. Davidov and the above N. Chyernyakhovskaya entitled Afganistan (Moscow, Misl’ Press, 1973; 168 pp.).

Agrarniy stroy Afganistana (osnovniye etapi razvitiya), The Agrarian System of Afghanistan: Basic Stages of Development (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1967; 183 pp.).

Afganskaya dyeryevnya (syel'skaya obshchina i rassloyeniye kryest'yanstva), The Afghan Village: Rural Society and the Stratification of the Peasantry (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1969; 263 pp.).

M. G. Pikulin, A. Sh. Shamansurova and R. T. Rashidov, is Ryemyeslo i myelkaya promishlyennost’ Afganistana, Artisanship and Small Industry of Afghanistan (Tashkent, Fan Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, 1976; 116 pp.).

M. A. Babakhodzhayev. The first is Ochyerki sotsial'no‐ekonomichyeskoy i politichyeskoy istorii Afganistana (konyets 19 v.), Essays About the Socio‐Economic and Political History of Afghanistan: The End of the 19th Century (Tashkent, Fan Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, 1975; 196 pp.).

Afganistan (voprosi istorii, ekonomiki i ftlologii), Afghanistan: Problems of History, Economics and Philology (Tashkent, Fan Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences, 1978; 124 pp.).

T. I. Kukhtina's Prosvyeshchyeniye v nyezavisimom Afganistanye, Education in Independent Afghanistan (Moscow, Oriental Literature Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia in the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1960; 140 pp.)

V. A. Yefimov's Yazik Afganskikh Khazara. Yakaulangskiy dialekt, The Language of the Afghan Kazars: The Yakaulanian Dialect (Moscow, Nauka Press, 1965; 99 pp.).

Afganskaya klassichyeskaya poeziya. Classical Afghan Poetry, translated from Pushtu by A. Gyerasimova, K. Lyebyedyev and L. Yatsyevich (Moscow, Artistic Literature Press, 1975; 224 pp.)

Afganskiye skazki, Afghan Tales, translated by the same K. Lyebyedyev (Moscow, Government Press for Artistic Literature, 1955; 160 pp.).

Skazki i stikhi Afganistana, Tales and Verses of Afghanistan (Moscow, Artistic Literature Press, 1958; 312 pp.).

Afganiskiye narodniye poslovitsi i pogovorki, Afghan Popular Proverbs and Sayings, translated from Pushtu by the above Lyebyedyev and Yatsyevich (Moscow, Foreign Literature Press, 1961; 67 pp.).

Afganskiye Skazki i lyegyendi, Afghan Tale and Legends, translated from Pushtu by various hands (Moscow, Nauka Press, 1972; 280 pp.).

G. P. Yedzhov's Nash sosyed Afganistan, Our Neighbour, Afghanistan (Znaniye Press, 1965; 32 pp.).

Afganistan (spravochnik), Afghanistan: A Reference Work (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1964; 276 pp.).

Sovryemyenniy Afganistan, Contemporary Afghanistan (Moscow, The Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1960; 504 pp., maps).

Afghanistan: Past and Present (Moscow, Social Sciences Today Press for the Soviet Union's Academy of Sciences, 1981; 272 pp.)     

More Soviet works on Iran

Richard Frye's The Heritage of Persia, translated as Naslyediye Irana, Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences’ History Section, 1972,468 pp.

Nicolas de Khanikoff's Mémoire sur la partie meridionale de I'Asie Centrale (originally published in Paris in 1862), translated as Ekspyeditisya v Khorasan, Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1973, 216 pp.

Sadeq Chubak, translated from the Persian as hbrannoye (Selections), Moscow, Khudodzhyestvynennaya Lityeratura Press, 1972,224 pp.

Lityeratura narodov Vostoka (The literature of the Peoples of the East), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1970, 190 pp.

Dzh. Dorri, Pyersidskaya satirichyeskaya proza: traditsiya i novatorstvo (Satirical Persian Prose: Tradition and Innovation), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1977, 216 pp.

Iranskoye Yazikoznaniye: Istoriya, etimologiya, tipologiya (Iranian Linguistics: History, Etymology, Typology), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Linguistics of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1976, 224 pp.

M. D. Milanyan's Gosudarstvyenniy stroy sovryemyennogo Irana (The Governmental Structure of Contemporary Iran), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Government and Law in the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1973,128 pp.

Ye. A. Doroshyenko's book, Shiitskoye dukhovyenstvo v sovryemyennom Irane (The Shiite Clergy in Contemporary Iran), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1975,172 pp.

Sh. M. Badi's Gorodskiye sryedniye sloi Irana (The Urban Middle Classes of Iran), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1977,232 pp.

A. Rasadi's Innostranniy kapital v Iraneposlye vtoroy mirovoy voyni (1945–1967 eg.) (Foreign Capital in Iran After the Second World War, 1945–1967), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of World Economy and International Relations, 1973,126 pp.

N. S. Tikhonov's Zapadnogyermanskiy kapital v Iranye (West‐German Capital in Iran), Baku, Elm Press for the Institute of the Peoples of the Near and Middle East of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences, 1972, 100 pp.

U. Z. Sharipov's Byudzhyet i byudzhyetnaya sistyema Irana (The Budget and the Budgetary System of Iran), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1976, 156 pp.

Istoriya Irana (The History of Iran) was prepared by the Oriental Faculty of Leningrad State University and published in Moscow, Moscow University Press, 1977, 488 pp.

Iran: ochyerki novyeyshyey istorii (Iran: Essays on Its Recent History), Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, 1976, 470 pp. Edited by A. Z. Arabadzhyan     

Panel on the Economic and Political Consequences of Chernobyl'

This article summarizes a discussion by a panel of leading experts on Soviet energy analyzing the consequences of the accident at the Chernobyl' nuclear plant in the Ukraine on April 26, 1986.

The near-term economic costs associated with clean-up, relocation, and compensating for losses to electricity supplies are significant but manageable. The longer-term effects will focus on likely modifications in Soviet strategies for the nuclear industry, which may shift emphasis back towards conventional fuels and conservation.

The political consequences were managed fairly well by the leadership. Consistent with Secretary Gorbachev's policy of glasnost' (openness) more information has been available on this event than was the case in previous analogous situations. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 124, 723.     

Soviet Transport Trends, 1950–1990

This paper examines links between the Soviet transport sector and other sectors of the economy. In the 1970s, the transport sector was perceived as a bottleneck. As growth slowed in the late 70s, howevar, the transport sector was able to meet the economy's demands. At present, the transportation of oil and gas is placing an increasing burden on the transport sector, but pipelines can absorb the demands, freeing up rail transport capacity for other commodities. The willingness of Soviet officials to make the appropriate administrative reforms, apply new technologies and increase investment in this sector will determine transport's ability to meet future demands. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 731.     

Persistence and change in Soviet and Russian relations with Afghanistan

This paper examines persistence and change in the Soviet Union's and then Russia's relations with Afghanistan with respect to development and security. First, a detailed analysis of the promise and reality of Soviet development assistance reveals conceptual shortcomings in their attempt to induce economic development in Afghanistan. The Soviet Union's heritage is then revealed in order to understand Russia's current perception of post-Taliban Afghanistan as well as Russia's emerging interests and commitment to Afghanistan's economic development. This paper argues that Russia will most likely replicate standard industrialization development approaches in contributing to Afghanistan's development. Therefore, Russia will probably run into problems similar to those that led to the failure of the Soviet modernization project, which consisted of large-scale development projects that were inappropriate to the country's institutions and the lives of most Afghans. It is questionable whether such reiteration will induce economic development now, in the complex setting of a fragmented and fragile state with a multitude of external players looking out for their own interests.     

Causes of the Slowdown in Soviet Defense

This paper discusses the recent official U.S. intelligence estimates indicating a slowdown in the growth rates of Soviet defense spending and military procurement since 1976. The Central Intelligence Agency's explanation for the slowdown is examined. Questions are raised about two of the factors, economic constraints and technical difficulties, and the implications of the CIA's explanation for theories about the relationship of the defense sector to the rest of the economy are considered. The author offers as a possible alternative explanation of the slowdown a change in Soviet military investment priorities de-emphasizing strategic offensive weapons. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 114, 124.     

Soviet studies on workers’ movements in the Middle East

Rabochiy klass Afriki (The working class of Africa), edited by I. P. Yastrebova, Moscow, Africa Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Nauka Press: 1966.

K. A. Guseynov's Rabochiy klass i Profsoyuzi Afriki {The working class and the trade unions of Africa), Moscow, Profizdat: 1969.

B. A. Shabayev's Rabochiy klass strait Magriba (The working class of the Maghrib lands), Moscow, Asia Institute¹ of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Nauka Press: 1968.

Willard A. Beling's important Modernization and African Labor: a Tunisian Case Study, N.Y., Praeger: 1965).

F. M. Atsamba and L. A. Fridman and titled Rabochiy klass stran Azii i Afriki (The working class in the countries of Asia and Africa), Moscow, Moscow University Press: 1966.

F. M. Atsamba's ‘The workers’ movement in Egypt on the eve of the Second World War, 1929–1939’ (pp. 266–94)

Selskohozyaystvenniye rabochiye v stranah Azii i Afriki (The agricultural workers in the countries of Asia and Africa), edited by G. G. Kotovskiy and I. A. Svanidze, Moscow, Oriental Institute and Africa Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Nauka Press: 1969.

Rabocheye dvizheniye v Azerbayzhane v godi novogo revolyutsiyonogo podyoma, 1910–1914 (The workers’ movement in Azerbaijan during the revolutionary progress, 1910–1914), Baku, Soviet Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences: 1967.

A. I. Shamide, Rabocheye i profsoyuznoye dvizheniye v Irane posle vtoroy mirovoy voyni, 1946–1953 (The workers’ and trade‐union movement in Iran after the Second World War, 1946–1953), Baku, Soviet Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences: 1965

Z. Z. Abdullayev, Formirovaniye rabochego klassa Irana (The formation of Iran's workers’ class), Baku, Soviet Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences: 1968.

Sh. M. Badi, Rabochiy klass Irana (Iran's workers’ class), Moscow, the Asia Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Nauka Press: 1965, is a smaller book (130 pages).

M. S. Ivanov, Rabochiy klass sowemennogo Irana (The workers’ class of contemporary Iran), Moscow, Ethnography Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Nauka Press: 1969.     

Reform and Damages for Breach of Contract in the Soviet Economy

Reforms in remedies for breach of contract emerging under perestroyka have as a main goal a reduction in the use of penalties in favor of compensation for damages. As background to these reforms, the basic principles of the Soviet law of contract damages are outlined, and the law's operation in practice under the traditional planning system is examined. Western economic theories of the choice of contract remedy are used to analyze the underlying causes of the difficulty of measuring and proving damages in the pre-reform system. Emerging reforms in contract remedies are described and evaluated in light of this analysis. journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124.     

Pyrrhic Victory in the “Tournament of Shadows”: Central Asia's Quest for Water Security (1991–2009)

Abstract

Central Asia's Soviet past continues to haunt the five successor sovereign states with water, a contentious issue. Although fundamental to survival and livelihood, regional cooperation over the precious resource remains a patchwork of short-term stop-loss agreements at best and an exercise in “frameworks without content” at worst. This article seeks to explain why this is so, based on a theoretical position derived from hydro-political discourse. The eclectic explanations include the hydro-hegemonic void created by the removal of Soviet authoritarianism; the securitization of the hydro-political complex in Central Asia; unilateral and bilateral substitutes for multilateral water resource cooperation; and the ineffectiveness of international law – all of which contribute to the impasse over water cooperation.     

Some Soviet works in Arabic

Nahnu wa‐'1‐'Arab 1988, We and the Arabs, 1988 (Moscow: Progress Press, 1988; 220 pp.).

Z. Gafurov, is entitled, ‘Problems of War and Peace and Contemporary Revolutionary Democracy’ (pp.21–40);

Vladimir Mikhaylov's Irhabiyyu al‐Mosad, The Terrorists of the Mossad (Moscow: Progress Press, 1987; 174 pp. Also published in Russian).

G.I. Mirskiy's al‐Jaysh wa’ 1‐mujtama'wa‐’ 1‐siyasa fi al‐buldan al‐namiya, Army, Society and Politics in the Developing Countries (Moscow: Progress Press, 1987; 228 pp.).

al‐'Alaqat al‐Sofyetiyya al‐Libiyya, Soviet‐Libyan Relations (Moscow: Progress Press, 1986; 213 pp.)

A. Shvyedov and V. Rumyantsiyev, also published in Russian in the same year. Its eight chapters are arranged chronologically, ending with a list of events, 1917–86 (pp.203–12),

Buhuth Sofyetiyya jadida fi al‐adab al‐'Arabi, New Soviet Studies in Arabic Literature (Moscow: Progress Press, 1986; 215 pp.)

Institute of Ethnography in the Soviet Academy of Sciences, entitled ’Alam al‐Badw, The World of the Bedouins (or: Nomads) (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1986; 213 pp. Soviet Ethnographic Studies, 2).

Idiyulujiyat al‐dimuqratiyya al‐thawriyya al‐Ifriqiyya, The Ideology of African Revolutionary Democracy (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1983; 140 pp.).

al‐lttihad al‐Sofyeti wa‐Ifriqiyya, The Soviet Union and Africa (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1983; 160 pp.).

Shamal Ifriqiyya: al‐tatawwur al‐mu'asir, North Arfrica: Contemporary Development (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1987; 192 pp.)

Al‐Qadiyya al‐Filastiniyya: al‐'udwan wa‐'l‐muqawama wa‐subul al‐ taswiya, The Palestinian Problem: Aggression, Resistance and Ways of Settlement (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1983; 230 pp. = Soviet Orientalism, 3)

Vladimir Belyakov, a newspaperman and radio commentator. Writing on ‘The Soviet Union and the Palestinian Revolution’ (pp.215–28),

Buldan al‐Sharq: al‐siyasa wa‐'1‐idiyulujiya, Countries of the East: Politics and Ideology (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1985; 220 pp. = Soviet Orientalism, 4)

Abhath jadida li‐'l‐musta'ribin al‐Sofyet, New Studies by Soviet Arabists have been published so far in three volumes.⁸ The first (Moscow: Social Sciences Press, 1986; 261 pp.= Soviet Orientalism, 5)

Aleksiy Vasil'yev's Misr wa‐'l‐Misriyyin, Egypt and the Egyptians (Moscow: Progress Press, 1989; 387 pp.).     

The Politics of Negotiating with Gangs. The Case of El Salvador

This paper explores the dynamics of negotiations between the Salvadoran government and the street gangs, called maras. The paper argues that state negotiations with criminal groups can occur when organized crime is a significant part of the social and political order. This tacit order allows a great deal of coordination between and within criminal organizations and the focus of negotiations from the state's point of view is limited to the management of violence, not the dismantling of gangs' territorial control. This article draws on seventeen in‐depth interviews with middle‐level gang leaders, government officials, and participants of the truce negotiations from 2012 to 2016; it also relies on public information published by Salvadoran journalists and government sources about the truce.     

Intelligence Fiasco or Reasoned Accounting?: CIA Estimates of Soviet GNP

A leading specialist on Soviet economics examines the heavily politicized debate on the CIA's estimates of the rate of growth and comparative size of the Soviet economy during the period 1960-1985. The author finds little evidence to support the common indictment that the CIA seriously misestimated the Soviet growth record. He finds somewhat greater reason to believe that the Agency's comparative size ratios were overstated. And he finds grounds to question whether CIA dealt effectively with the limitations of the size and growth measures in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: P27, P24, P52.     

Reflections on Technology in Postwar Reconstruction

A debate on the pattern of technological advance in the Soviet economy after World War II reflects some differences between a distinguished American specialist and two eminent Soviet economists participating in the first joint Soviet Economy roundtable. The discussion covers observations on obsolescence in Soviet consumer goods industries, technology transfers to China, a former emphasis on new construction at the expense of existing capacity, and contradictory aspects and tangible advances in Soviet technology during postwar reconstruction. Also included is Academician Abalkin's comment on technological progress in the context of economic history from the 1920s through the postwar period and perestroyka. journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 621.     

Bulgarian studies on the Ottoman Empire and Turkey

Chez les voisins de l'Afghanistan: l'Asie Centrale Soviétique (Moscow: Progress Press, 1983; 174 pp.)

’Islamskiy faktor’ v myedzhdunarodnikh otnoshyeniyakh v Azii, ‘The Islamic Factor’ in International Relations in Asia (Moscow: Nauka, 1987; 192 pp.)

Islam v SSSR: osobyennosti protsyessa syekularizatsii v ryespublikakh Sovyetskogo Vostoka, Islam in the Soviet Union: Characteristics of the Secularisation Process in the Republics of the Soviet East (Moscow: Misl’ Press, 1983; 175 pp.)

Oktay Efyendiyev's Azyerbaydzhankoye gosudarstvo Syefyevidov v XVI vyekye, The Azerbayjanian Government of the Safavids in the 16 Century (Baku: Elm Press for the Institute of History in the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbayjanian Soviet Republic, 1981; 308 pp.)

Kavkaz i Sryednyaya Aziya vo vnyeshnyey politiki Rossii: vtoraya polovina XVIII – 80ye godi XIX v., The Caucasus and Central Asia in the Foreign Policies of Russia: From the 18th Century to the 1880s (Moscow: Moscow University Press, 1984; 328 pp.)

Zapiski o Bukharskom Khanstvye, Notes on the Khanate of Bukhara (Moscow: Nauka Press for the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union, 1983; 150 pp.).

M. Annanyepyesov's Ukryeplyeniye Russko‐Turkmyenskikh vzaimootnoshyeniy v XVIII‐XIX vv., The Consolidation of Russo‐Turkmenian Mutual Relations in the 18 and 19 Centuries (Ashkhabad: Ilim Press for the Institute of History in the Academy of Sciences of the Turkmenian Soviet Republic, 1981; 267 pp.).

G. Kh. Saparova's Revolyutsionniy komityet Turkmyenskoy SSR kak Pyerviy visshiy organ gosudarstvyennoy vlasti ryespubliki, The Revolutionary Committee of Soviet Turkmenistan as the First Supreme Body of Political Power of the Republic (Askhabad: Ilim Press for the Institute of History in the Academy of Sciences of the Turkmenian Soviet Republic, 1981; 132 pp.).

I.V. Pogoryel'skiy's Istoriya Khivinskoy ryevolyutsii i Khoryezmskoy Narodnoy Ryespubliki 1917–1924 gg., History of the Revolution in Khiva and the Popular Soviet Republic of Khorezm, 1917–1924 (Leningrad: Leningrad University Press, 1984; 228 pp.).

Kh. Sh. Inoyatov's Narodi Sryednyey Azii v bor'bye protiv intyervyentov i vnutryennyey konterryevolyutsii, The Peoples of Central Asia in the War with the Interventionists and with Domestic Counter‐Revolution (Moscow: Misl’ Press, 1984; 464 pp.).

Basmachyestvo: vozniknovyevniye, sushchnost’, krakh, The Basmachi Movement: Rise, Nature and Downfall (Moscow: Nauka Press, 1981; 246 pp.)

Basmachyestvo: pravda istorii i vimisyel’ fal'sifikatorov, The Basmachi Movement: Historical Truth and Fabrications of the Falsifiers (Moscow: Misl’ Press, 1986; 256 pp.).

M. Syeytakova, entitled Obraz Russkogo chyelovyeka v Turkmyenskoy Sovyetskoy prozye, The Image of the Russian Person in Turkmenian Soviet Prose (Ashkhabad: Ilim Press for the Academy of Sciences of the Turkmenian Soviet Republic, 1981; 57 pp.)

A.K. Rzayev, entitled Azyerbaydzhanskiye vostokovyedi XIX vyeka: ochyerki, Azerbayjanian Orientalists of the 19 Century: Essays (Baku: Elm Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies in the Academy of Sciences of the Azerbayjanian Soviet Republic, 1986; 141 pp.)

Tatarskaya lityeratura i publitsistika nachala XX vyeka, Tatar Literature and Journalism of the Early 20 Century (2nd edition, Kazan: Tatar Book Press, 1983; 352 pp.).

Azat Akhmadullin's Gorizonti Tatarskoy drami: lityeraturno‐kritichyeskiye stat'i, The Horizons of the Tatar Drama: Papers of Literary Criticism (Kazan: Tatar Book Press, 1983; 216 pp.)

R. U. Amirkhanov's Tatarskaya dyemokratichyeskaya pyechat’ (1905–1907 gg.) The Tatar Democratic Press, 1905–1907 (Moscow: Nauka Press, 1988; 190 pp.).     

Gorbachev's Leadership: Another View

A leading British political scientist argues that Gorbachev's responsiveness to different opinions and institutional interests has been a necessary part of the Soviet transition. He stresses the importance of Gorbachev's combination of tactical flexibility and movement in a basically liberal direction. One step back has often been followed by two steps forward. The author maintains that Gorbachev's political acumen and international prestige remain significant assets, suggesting that it would be an illusion to imagine that the task of transforming the Soviet system would proceed more smoothly without him. The essay covers developments through the first week of December 1990. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 124, 822.