The Soviet economic dilemma of eastern Europe

This report examines probable changes in Soviet economic policies toward Eastern Europe during the next decade. It studies the issue of Soviet economic subsidies to Eastern Europe and explores several hypotheses that could explain why they have been granted. Finally, it discusses ways in which Soviet willingness to subsidize Eastern Europe will likely be affected by increased Soviet economic stringency, along with the possible repercussions of a decline in subsidies for East European economies. The study concludes that the Soviet Union will continue to use an awkward, expensive system of trade within the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance to buttress its important strategic, ideological, bureaucratic, and political stakes in the region.