ABSTRACT

In view of the Soviet Union's relatively smaller economic performance, the armament burden must necessarily represent a several times greater share than in the Federal Republic of Germany or in the United States. Soviet armament production takes place, so far as known, predominantly within nine machine-building ministries. The Soviet leadership obviously plans a massive interference in the Ministry for Electronics which is one of the most important armament sectors. Scholars and politicians evidently no longer demand the disclosure of armament costs just in order to make possible a more precise analysis of the performance level of the national economy. They are also turning against those influential groups that hitherto profited from the priority of the armament sector and thus obviously put up resistance against any redirection of resources. The criticism of the armament sector was made possible by the new orientation of the national economy in the wake of the 19th party conference.