The collapse of the USSR owes debt, Russiayears to pay off, Putin is under pressure.
Looking back at the history of the world over the past 100 years, people are often amazed by the changes in the power of the world. In those days, the only country that could compete with the United States was the Soviet Union.
The birth of the Soviet Union added a strong political color to the world. It has made arrogant capitalism realize the incomparable power of socialism, and it has also inspired the enthusiasm of countless underdeveloped countries to explore their own development paths according to their own national conditions.
Since its founding, the Soviet Union has begun to carry out drastic reforms, and with the advantages of unified leadership and the joint efforts of the whole people, the Soviet Union has quickly reached the top of the world. It is a pity that the theory of socialist construction was not fully inherited in the course of the change of leadership in the Soviet Union.
The collapse of the Soviet Union in December 1991 skewed the path of socialism in the post-Soviet space, culminating in bankruptcy. The glory of the former big brother country is gone, and the allies are beginning to divide their property, settle their debts, and become independent.
The huge foreign debt left by the Soviet Union took Russia 26 years to repay. This is a huge challenge for Russia's leaders, who need to shoulder the historic mission of paying off foreign debts and reviving the country's economy and society.
Under Putin, they faced great difficulties.
Under the wise leadership of Comrade Lenin, the working class rose like a comet and established the world's first socialist state. However, the Western capitalist countries, led by the United States, were deeply frightened by this and immediately imposed full-fledged sanctions against the USSR.
In the face of these formidable adversaries, the nascent Soviet power had no choice but to make every effort to improve its scientific research and defense capabilities, hoping to leap from an agrarian country to an advanced industrial country as soon as possible.
From the policy of wartime communism to the New Economic Policy, the Soviet Union, although it had some achievements, also experienced many setbacks and difficulties. In the process, the Soviet leadership constantly summed up lessons and improved working methods in order to achieve sustained and stable growth of the national economy.
In the process of industrializing the country, the Soviet Union adopted a development strategy of investing heavily in heavy industry. They are well aware that only by achieving rapid industrialization can they remain invincible in international competition.
However, this concentration of inputs made the development of agriculture and light industry in the Soviet Union relatively lagging behind, and the living conditions of the peasants did not receive sufficient attention. While the Soviet working class was growing stronger, the position of the Soviet peasants was gradually declining.
Their hard work is often not rewarded as it should be, and some farmers even earn less than a month's wages for workers. At the same time, peasants are often discriminated against, forcing them to abandon traditional agricultural production in favor of the big cities to earn a living.
Under these conditions, the development of agriculture and light industry in the USSR was seriously affected, and the life of the peasants was in trouble. Therefore, the Soviet Union needed to re-examine its own development strategy, not only to achieve the goal of industrialization, but also to pay attention to the survival and development of the peasants, in order to achieve the long-term stable development of the country.
The large-scale decline in grain and meat production in the USSR led to a serious shortage of domestic **. In order to meet the needs of a huge population, the USSR had to massively import agricultural and light industrial products such as grain and textiles.
At the same time, the USSR had high expectations for achievements in the military-industrial complex, and China wanted to learn from the USSR. In this case, the USSR became dependent on China's ** and gradually became a debtor to China.
The military spending of the Soviet Union has always accounted for the bulk of state expenditures, and even for some time it was several times higher than that of Western countries. In addition, the Soviet Union also vigorously supported the construction of other socialist countries, and unconditionally granted loans to these countries and assisted them in the construction of thousands of projects.
According to statistics, by 1989, the Soviet Union had generously provided loans of up to $149 billion to more than 60 countries and regions. However, most of these loans have disappeared after they have been lent out, and those countries and regions have not offered to repay them.
All things considered, the repayment rate for this loan is less than five percent. Some people may say that the Soviets are stupid and have a lot of money, but the reason why the Soviet Union dared to carry out these projects so arrogantly was mainly because the Soviet Union made a lot of money in the seventies and eighties of the last century by relying on oil exports.
It is a pity that the subsequent sharp increase in oil ** led to a sudden tightening of the Soviet Union's finances, but there was no corresponding reduction in fiscal spending.
The drawbacks of the unitary nature of the Soviet Union's fiscal revenues were clearly revealed. Nation-building needs money, but what if you don't have it? Borrow. In January 1987, the chairman of the Soviet Union confessed: "We have long been unable to make ends meet, and we can only rely on borrowing money to get by." ”
The words of the President of the USSR ** hinted at the large amount of foreign debt owed by the USSR. In the nineties of the twentieth century, people were not surprised when the Soviet Union announced its foreign debt, which amounted to $96 billion.
After internal and external troubles, the debt-ridden Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 after a dilapidated economy. These fifteen countries divided the property and debts of the Soviet Union, each with its own separate portal.
In terms of the distribution of property, everyone happily liquidated all the assets in their territories, but on the issue of the distribution of debts, there were many negotiations between the fifteen countries.
Of these fifteen countries, Russia inherited the most Soviet property, so adhering to the principle that "as much power there is, there is responsibility", Russia took on the largest amount of debt, accounting for 61% of the total debt.
Ukraine and Belarus each took on 165% and 413 per cent of the debt, with the remaining 11 member states taking on the debt.
According to the agreement, fifteen countries will share the debt proportionally, and if one country refuses to do so, the others will need to work together to help repay the debt. Most countries are satisfied with this, but the three Baltic countries are strongly expressing this**.
Lithuania developed under the policy support of the Soviet Union, but its leaders were ungrateful and crossed the river and demolished the bridge. When the smell of the collapse of the Soviet Union came, Lithuania left the Soviet Union ahead of schedule and joined the Western world.
However, when they learned that they needed to take on the debts left by the Soviet Union, they felt a great pressure and therefore refused to sign the agreement.
At the instigation of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia expressed their refusal to sign a debt repayment agreement, which led to the failure of the negotiations. The Western world is very anxious about this, and frequently sends people to Russia to ask about the distribution of debts.
Delay would not solve the fundamental problem, and non-payment of debts would lead to the isolation and hostility of the fifteen member States. Therefore, Russia has decided to solve the real debt problem based on its long-term national interests.
Finally, in 1993, under the coordination of several international debt organizations, including the Paris Club, the Zero Point Agreement was born.
The agreement clearly stipulates that Russia will take over the overseas assets left by the Soviet Union and independently assume full responsibility for repayment. Although the statement provoked strong reactions in society, the issue of debt distribution did not cause discontent in any country.
According to follow-up statistics, Russia, as the successor of the Soviet Union, eventually assumed most of the Soviet Union's foreign debt, totaling close to 100 billion dollars. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia began a long process of reforming its economic system and paying its debts.
From the point of view of the leadership, the development of Russia after the collapse of the USSR can be divided into two stages, the first is Yeltsin's trial and error stage, and the second is Putin's stage of recovery and development.
During the eight years of Yeltsin's rule, Russia began to explore economic transformation, and although the results were not significant, it accumulated valuable practical experience. Under the guidance of the International Monetary Organization, Yeltsin led Russia to implement a "shock**" to promote market-oriented economic reforms.
He stressed on many occasions that one of the fundamental tasks of economic transformation is to ensure the irreversibility of reform, otherwise it will only mend the old system and will not play a real role in reform.
In order to promote economic development and reform, Yeltsin vigorously promoted privatization and the liberalization of the market economy during his administration. Although this system has temporarily promoted the development of the Russian economy, it has also hindered the development of the Russian economy in the later stage to a certain extent and undermined the economic order.
From 1992 to 1998, the Russian economy suffered a serious blow, and state-owned property was embezzled by private individuals, resulting in oligarchs controlling the country's economic lifeline and dominance, the gap between the rich and the poor in society widened, class contradictions became increasingly acute, and the total economic output declined sharply.
Because of the shortage of funds, Russia's debt can only be delayed again and again. Apparently, the "shock **" was unsuccessful. After the outbreak of the financial crisis in 1998, Russia began to deeply reflect on previous reform measures, and realized that Russia's economic reform could not simply imitate the common practice of Western countries, but needed to find a path that suited Russia's actual situation.
At the turn of the millennium, Yeltsin stepped down from office, and Putin stepped onto the stage of history.
In the Putin era, which is moving forward steadily, Putin's administration has opened a new historical chapter in Russia's development. For him, the first task is to restore economic order and achieve social stability.
And, of course, paying off debts. During Putin's tenure, his governing style has always been steadfast"Steady progress"The general tone. Putin is convinced that to realize the vision of a prosperous, strong and stable country, there must be a stable and powerful superstructure.
To this end, he strengthened the centralization of power, combined with the general principles of the market economy, and established a unique market economy system that can be regulated and controlled. On this basis, he led Russia to carry out comprehensive reforms and reshape order in the political, judicial, social, and cultural fields. "
After taking office, Putin took three major measures to effectively control the scale of foreign debt: limiting the total debt ratio to 60% of GDP, spending on debt costs not exceeding 20% of the total state budget, and controlling the federal budget deficit to no more than 3% of GDP.
In addition, Putin has rectified the oligarchic economy, restricted its participation in politics, and nationalized core industries, which has brought stable income to the financial sector. At the same time, Putin strengthened his control over the local government, united the Russian party, and realized the country's governance pattern from turbulence to fundamental stability.
Such a strong state political system ensures the stable development of society, which in turn promotes economic recovery and recovery. From 1999 to 2009, the average monthly income of Russian residents jumped from $70 to $530, fully demonstrating the country's development achievements under Putin's leadership.
In addition to political and economic reforms, the improvement of Russia's fiscal situation also depends on international oil**. From 1998 to 2008, international oil prices continued to soar, increasing about eightfold in just a few years.
This is Russia's greatest asset**, because oil is the main pillar of their fiscal revenue. Under such an opportunity, Russia has increased its oil exports, which not only promotes the development of its own oil industry, but also greatly improves Russia's financial situation.
With the increase in wealth, Russia began to repay its foreign debt. In 2004, Russia owed Europe $47.5 billion, but by 2006 it was only $3.1 billion.
In 2005, China and Russia signed an agreement in which Russia repaid about 4$500 million in debt. Eventually, by 2015, Russia officially announced that it had paid off all of its Chinese debts.
After 26 years of hard work, Russia finally paid off all of the $125.2 billion in foreign debt left over by the Soviet Union in August 2017. Although there is an argument that the debts of the USSR should not be borne by Russia alone, this does not mean that the leaders lack wisdom.
In fact, the repayment of debts is only a necessary process for Russia to achieve greater results. After paying off its debts, Russia received the status of a permanent member of the UN Security Council, inheriting the resources left by the USSR around the world, including land, minerals and overseas military bases.
The value of these wealth and resources far exceeds those seemingly huge foreign debts.
At many critical stages of life, we need to open our eyes and take a long-term view, rather than being bothered by immediate gains and losses. All failed attempts are the cornerstone of success.
Yeltsin's failure to reform was not a complete failure, he was just trying, exploring; It is precisely because of his explorations and attempts that Putin was able to quickly find a path of reform and development that is truly suited to Russia's national conditions.
Therefore, behind those seemingly illogical things, there are often huge opportunities lurking.
The study of the Russian economy after the collapse of the Soviet Union refers to the literature such as "The Fiscal Perspective of the Collapse of the Superpowers: A Case Study of the Soviet Union", "A Study on the Scale of Russia's Foreign Debt", and "The Russian Economy in the Thirty Years Since the Collapse of the Soviet Union: An Analysis of Transformation and Growth".