The Age Structure of Soviet Population: Preliminary Analysis Of Unpublished Data

This article presents and analyzes hitherto unpublished data on the age structure of the population of the USSR and four of its republics. Analysis of the patterns revealed by these newly available data provides a basis for understanding why they had not been published in the USSR in the six years since the census date. The implications of the data for the analysis of Soviet society, its economic potential, and military draft pools are discussed. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 800.     

The Most Recent Input-Output Table: A Milestone in Soviet Statistics

The paper reproduces the 18 × 18 sector Soviet input-output table for 1988 which became available in the West in April 1990, but has not been published in the USSR. The layout (quadrants) and selected elements of the table are described and briefly analyzed. Because the hitherto unavailable statistics facilitate the analysts of a variety of critical issues such as the price reform, defense expenditures, and private incomes and taxation, the input-output table is regarded as an important contribution as well as a milestone in the gradual process of releasing economic data in accordance with the policies of glasnost'. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 052, 222.     

CIA Economic Intelligence on the USSR, 1949-60

Reflecting Gorbachev's demands for glasnost' (openness), the Central Statistical Administration recently published several key statistical series which had not been available in the USSR for the last 5 to 35 years. These included data on grain harvests, life expectancy and infant mortality, and production and consumption of alcohol. The article shows that the newly available data compare well with estimates made by Western specialists. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 225.     

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).     

Prospects for Change in the Systems of Price Formation,Finance and Credit in the USSR

The Chairman of the Interdepartmental Council on Problems of Price Formation of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR and Goskomtsen discusses prospects for change in the pricing and credit policies of the USSR. Distortions in current price levels, the need and objectives for the restructuring of the system and links between the price and financial reforms are explained. Strategies for change are to include price formation from marginal prices and modification of wholesale prices to encourage high technology. Specific proposals are advanced, in particular those pertaining to stabilization of prices, circulation of money and reorganization of the bank credit system. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 052, 124, 227.     

The Slowdown in Soviet Industry, 1976–1982

Growth rates of industrial production in the USSR have been falling since 1950, and the drop was especially large in 1976–1982. The falloff was associated with a pronounced deterioration in factor productivity. The most important explanatory factors seem to have been the economy's unfavorable response to a major cutback in the growth ot investment, unexpected shortages ot key raw materials and energy, and transportation bottlenecks. Mistakes in investment policy seem to have been responsible for many of these difficulties. The secular decline in industrial growth probably will continue since the causes of the slowdown are imbedded in the system of socialist central planning and systemic reform is not likely. Journal of Economic Literature Classification Numbers: 052, 113, 124.     

Restructuring the Mechanism of Foreign Economic Relations in the USSR

An up-to-date paper by the Deputy Chairman of the State Commission on Foreign Economic Relations, USSR Council of Ministers, details recent economic reforms in the foreign trade sector of the USSR. Particular emphasis is placed on direct business relations between Soviet enterprises and their foreign counterparts, and on joint ventures with CMEA partners as well as firms in Western and developing countries. Anticipated changes in the role exports and imports are to play in the Soviet economy are also discussed. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 420.     

Soviet Economic Reforms Since Stalin: Ideology,Politics, and Learning

An American political scientist reinterprets the politics of economic reform in the USSR from 1953 to 1991. The paper offers an integrated explanation for three features of reform policies: their reappearance during periods of political succession; their persistent partiality; and their radicalization over time. The explanation focuses on the interaction over time among political competition, ideology, and collective learning. Reasoning leads to conclusions that a consensus on the superiority of a market economy finally emerged within the Soviet leadership in 1990, but that the learning process has not resulted in a consensus on strategies and costs of transition, journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 040, 052.     

Environmentalism in the USSR: The Opposition to the River Diversion Projects

The opposition to the Soviet river diversion projects is analyzed in order to explore the nature of environmentalism in the USSR. Three groups are distinguished: (1) utilitarians, who concentrate upon economics and argue for the more rational use of natural resources and freer specialist participation in policymaking; (2) populists, who argue that nature also has noneconomic value and advocate broader public participation; and (3) Russian nationalists, who argue that economic development has destroyed the spirituality of modern Soviet man, and wish to reverse this process in order to return to the traditional values of the Russian village. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 124, 720.     

Other publications received

(a 28‐page pamphlet, in the series Fifty Years of Soviet Oriental Studies, published in 1967 by Nauka Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the USSR Academy of Sciences).

N. A. Kuznyetsova and L. M. Kulagina, and entitled Iz istorii Sovyetskogo Vostokovyedyeniya 1917–1967

(From the History of Soviet Orientalism, 1917–1967),

(Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1970, 252 pp.).

Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 7, no. 3, October 1971, pp. 363–65

(see Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. VII, no. 2, May 1971, pp. 237–39).

V. V. Lyebyedyev's Pozdniy sryednyearabskiy yazik (XIII‐XVIII vv.)

(The Late Middle‐Arabic Language: The 13th‐18th Centuries), Moscow, Nauka Press, 1977; 92 pp.

A. A. Kovalyev and G. M. Gabuchan, was published by Moscow University Press in 1968 and comprises 208 pages.

V. S. Khrakovskiy's Ochyerki po obshchyemu i Arabskomu sintaksisu (Essays on General and Arabic Syntax), (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Linguistics of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1973; 290 pp.).

V. M. Byelkin's Arabskaya Lyeksikologia (Arabic Lexicology), (Moscow University Press, 1975; 200 pp.).

F. L. Shapiro and edited by B. M. Grande, entitled Ivrit‐Russkiy slovar’ (Hebrew‐Russian Dictionary), (Moscow, Government Press for National and Foreign Dictionaries, 1963, 768 pp.).

B. M. Grande's Kurs Arabskoy grammatiki v Sravnityel'no‐istorichyeskom osvyeshchyenii (A Course of Arabic Grammar, From a Comparative Approach), (Moscow, Oriental Literature Press for the Institute of the Peoples of Asia of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1963, 596 pp.).

A. A. Kovalyev and G. Sh. Sharbatov, entitled Uchyebnik Arabskogo Yazika (Textbook for Learning Arabic), (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Institute of Oriental Languages at Moscow University, 1969, 688 pp.).

E. Dz. Myemmyedov's Al‐Lugha al‐'Arabiyya (The Arabic Language), (Baku, Ma'arif Press, 1971, 404 pp.).

G. V. Tsyeryetyeli, entitled Arabskaya Khryestomatiya (An Arabic Anthology), (Tiflis University Press, 1975; 107, 16pp.).

O. B. Frolova's Mi govorim po‐Arabskiy (We speak Arabic), (Moscow, Nauka Press for the Oriental Faculty of Leningrad University and for the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1972, 303 pp.).

I. S. Danilov, V. I. Ridzkov and M. G. Anisimov, entitled Arabsko‐Russkiy i Russko‐Arabskiy voyenniy slovar’ (Arabic‐Russian and Russian‐Arabic Dictionary of Military Terms), (Moscow, USSR Ministry of Defence Press, 1965, 704 pp.).

Kh. K. Baranov's Arabsko‐Russkiy slovar’ (Arabic‐Russian Dictionary), (2nd edition, Moscow, Government Press for Foreign and National Dictionaries, 1958, 1189 pp.)

T. A. al‐Farhi and V. N. Krasnovskiy, entitled Karmanniy Russko‐Arabskiy slovar’ (Pocket Russian‐Arabic Dictionary), (Moscow, Government Press for Foreign and National Dictionaries, 1959, 695 pp.).

G. Sh. Sharbatov's Russko‐Arabskiy uchyebniy slovar’ (A Russian‐Arabic school dictionary), (Moscow, The Soviet Encyclopaedia Press, 1964, 1056, 140 pp.).

V. M. Borisov's Russko‐Arabskiy slovar’ (Russian‐Arabic Dictionary), (Moscow, The Soviet Encyclopaedia Press, 1967, 1120 pp.).     

The file on operation “Priboi”: A re-assessment of the mass deportations of 1949

Abstract

Using information from documents found in the Russian State Military Archives, this article discusses the organization and execution of the Soviet mass deportations from the Baltic States in March 1949 — code-named Operation “Priboi” by the USSR MVD. These findings are presented for the first time in English, in the context both of established historiographical interpretations and recent literature on the deportations. The aim is to encourage a scholarly reassessment of Operation “Priboi” as a crime against humanity perpetrated by the Soviet occupation regime, but supported by indigenous collaborators to a far greater degree than previously assumed.     

Three new Soviet books on Turkey

The History of Education in Turkey by A. D. Zheltyakov and Yu. A. Petrosyan. USSR. Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 1965

Turkey in 1960–1963 by M. A. Gasratyan, Moscow, 1965.

A MysV Publication by P. P. Moiseyev and M. A. Gasratyan, (Moscow, 1965).     

New Soviet books

By R. T. Akhramovich. Nauka Press. USSR Academy of Sciences. Moscow, 1966. Index. Pp. 191.

The other is The Arabs, Islam and the Arab Caliphate, by Ye. A. Belyayev, which is, alas, posthumously published.     

African Indigenous Knowledge Systems and Human Rights: Implications for Higher Education,Based on the South African Experience

ABSTRACT

Africa has rich traditions and knowledge systems founded on the principles of caring for one another and the spirit of mutual support embedded in the African philosophy of Ubuntu. These collective values tend to be marginalised in international human rights standards built on western values. The standards were developed without broad-based consultation of the different value systems in Africa. Therefore, in order to inspire sustainable implementation among diverse cultures, dialogue to develop universal human rights and obligations based on the diversity of cultures and ways of knowing is needed. Using South Africa's experience at two universities, the extent to which these institutions have attempted to incorporate African indigenous knowledge systems (AIKS) and human rights into the higher education curriculum is investigated. The implications for higher education and the human rights and development paradigms built on western knowledge systems are investigated. North-West University has been the pioneer of integrating AIKS into higher education in South Africa and is the only higher education institution in South Africa with an accredited IKS Teaching Programme at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels – which has been notably successful, albeit with some challenges. AIKS has also been integrated into research and teaching at the University of KwaZulu-Natal and has registered significant successes since 2012. The need to embed AIKS in the curriculum of higher education institutions is affirmed.     

‘Going away on foot’ once again: the revival of temporary labour migration from Russia's Dagestan

This article addresses temporary labour migration – known in Russian as otkhodnichestvo (going away on foot) – from the Russian republic of Dagestan. The discussion is situated within reviews of current work on migration in the former Soviet Union, push-pull factors determining migration behaviour in the North Caucasus, and the historical importance of otkhodnichestvo in imperial Russia and the USSR. The paper then turns to the results of a census conducted in summer 2006, which found that most migrants come from Dagestan's mountainous southwest, frequently obtain work at locations characterized by economic growth and high pay, and rely on ethnic or communal networks as a basis for choosing employment sector and destination when searching for work.     

“A disagreement between allies”: The United Kingdom,the United States,and the Soviet-Japanese territorial dispute, 1945–1956

Russian-Japanese relations are frozen in time by their territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands. In untangling the dispute, scholars have studied the history of Russo-Japanese relations, the USSR’s annexation of the islands in 1945, and the role of the United States as the USSR’s erstwhile wartime ally and Japan’s postwar partner. The United Kingdom, a key player in 1945, has been neglected in these studies. This article analyzes the evolution of the British position on the Soviet-Japanese territorial dispute from 1945 to the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1956. The article reveals the marked divergence in this position from that of the United States, proceeding from a disagreement over the interpretation of the 1945 Yalta Agreement. In addition, the article highlights the manipulation of the territorial dispute by the United States to further its own political and security objectives and the British reaction to these maneuvers. Her recent publications includeBack in the USSR: Russia’s Intervention in the Internal Affairs of the Former Soviet Republics and the Implications for United States Policy Toward Russia (with Pamela Jewett) (John F. Kennedy School of Government, 1994).     

IMPERIAL DESIGNS

For a very short period after the attacks on 9/11, as the United States bombarded Taliban positions and the alleged training camps of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida organization, Afghanistan was center stage. Then, as the mundane mopping up, the political haggling, and the international community's efforts to manage the postwar mess took over, the spotlight turned to Iraq. Yet even while Afghan landscapes, politics, and economic and social practices were the focus of the world's attention, the country's history and its place in Central Asia and in the wider realm of Asian and global geopolitics were little covered by the media. This essay outlines how Afghanistan has figured in the imperial designs of regional and international powers for more than two thousand years. From the Mongol invasions of the “civilized” world in the thirteenth century to the U.S. intervention just after the turn of the second millennium CE., the “deep” political history of Afghanistan is described with a view to “locating” the country in a wider political-economic context. Afghanistan's relationship to the great regional empires of Persia, India, and China in the late medieval and early modern periods is discussed, as is its role in “the Great Game” of imperial politics between Russia and British India during the nineteenth century. The regional impact of the Russian Revolution and of efforts to consolidate the USSR are described, as is the rising nationalism and Islamism of the peoples of the region during the final years of the Soviet Union. The Soviet intervention in Afghanistan and the longer term implications of U.S. support for the mujahiddin – support that ironically contributed to the movement that gave rise to al-Qaida -- are analyzed as the final episodes before 9/11 and the recent dramatic U.S. military and political intervention.     

Coal Miners and the Transformation of the USSR

A specialist on Russian local and regional government examines relations among levels of political authority within Tyumen' Oblast'. Russian-language publications and on-site interviews constitute the base of evidence. Issues examined include challenges to the region posed by dissolution of the USSR, legal and political conflicts among levels of government, relations with federal authorities in Moscow, the role of oil companies in the region, and the impact of changes introduced under President Putin.     

Soviet Electric Power After Chernobyl': Economic Consequences and Options

A review of the role of nuclear power in Soviet electricity production and of economic and design factors that may have contributed to the accident at the Chernobyl' Atomic Power Station sets the stage for analysis of its economic and other impacts on the USSR and Eastern Europe. The paper outlines methods for estimating direct costs stemming from lost generating capacity, agricultural output, and plant infrastructure; clean-up and relocation; and medical care. Longer-term costs in the form of environmental and public health problems, reexamination of energy development strategies, and effects on international trade will be greater but more difficult to determine. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 027, 124, 723.     

Approaches to the Politics of Systemic Economic Reform in the Soviet Union

Political support for economic reform in the USSR is evaluated at five different levels of Soviet society, or more properly, of the political-administrative hierarchy: the top leader (Gorbachev himself), the collective leadership (Politburo), the bureaucracy, knowledge specialists (intelligentsia), and the population at large. Attitudes and motivations within each group are examined in order to demonstrate how interest group relations in the Soviet Union have made and will continue to make basic economic change a protracted, complex, and unpredictable process. journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: 052, 113.