ABSTRACT
When reading about the eagerness of noncommunist countries to sell their technology to the Soviet Union, one recalls the oft-quoted dictum credited to Lenin. This was that capitalists are so greedy that they would sell their executioner the rope with which to hang them. The difficulty is that opinions vary regarding whether various products are strings or ropes. Thus, in recent years there has been a great deal of controversy about technological transfer. The nordic countries have not avoided this dispute. In fact, Sweden has at times been in the spotlight.
