Finally, the book assesses the contribution of international assistance programmes to the denuclearization process under way in the former Soviet Union.
Because of the recent transition in the Soviet Union's leadership, scholars worldwide have found it necessary to reevaluate Soviet domestic and foreign policy. In this volume, prominent Japanese, U.S., and European experts examine changes within the USSR as well as Soviet reactions to changes in the rest of the world. They assess the immediate implications of change for such areas as technology, energy policy, and economic reform and deliver commentaries on current policy directions and historical backgrounds of Soviet policies. To commemorate its silver jubilee and to add the valuable perspective of Japanese Soviet-studies scholars to Western analyses, the Japan Institute of International Affairs held the symposium on which this volume is based.
Endowed with abundant energy resources, the Soviet Union is the world's largest oil producer and a major exporter of both oil and gas. Energy exports provide over half of Soviet hard-currency receipts, and subsidized energy sales to Eastern Europe are vital tools of Soviet influence in that region. Despite this enviable position, there have been indications in the past few years that the U.S.S.R. may soon face an energy shortage. In addition to examining the significance of U.S. petroleum equipment and technology for Soviet energy development, this book addresses the following questions: First, what opportunities and problems confront the U.S.S.R. in its five primary energy industries-oil, gas, coal, nuclear, and electric power-and what are plausible prospects for these industries in the present decade? Second, what equipment and technology are most needed by the U.S.S.R. in these areas, how much of each has been or is likely to be purchased from the West, and to what extent is the United States the sole or preferred supplier? Third, and perhaps most critical, how much difference could the West as a whole or the United States alone make to Soviet energy availability by 1990, and what are the implications of either providing or withholding such assistance for both the entire Soviet bloc and for the West?
Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring The Cold War dominated international life from the end of World War II to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. But how did the conflict begin? Why did it move from its initial origins in Postwar Europe to encompass virtually every corner of the globe? And why, after lasting so long, did the war end so suddenly and unexpectedly? Robert McMahon considers these questions and more, as well as looking at the legacy of the Cold War and its impact on international relations today. The Cold War: A Very Short Introduction is a truly international history, not just of the Soviet-American struggle at its heart, but also of the waves of decolonization, revolutionary nationalism, and state formation that swept the non-Western world in the wake of World War II. McMahon places the 'Hot Wars' that cost millions of lives in Korea, Vietnam, and elsewhere within the larger framework of global superpower competition. He shows how the United States and the Soviet Union both became empires over the course of the Cold War, and argues that perceived security needs and fears shaped U.S. and Soviet decisions from the beginning—far more, in fact, than did their economic and territorial ambitions. He unpacks how these needs and fears were conditioned by the divergent cultures, ideologies, and historical experiences of the two principal contestants and their allies. Covering the years 1945-1990, this second edition uses recent scholarship and newly available documents to offer a fuller analysis of the Vietnam War, the changing global politics of the 1970s, and the end of the Cold War. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.