ABSTRACT
A. M. Nekrich, in a well-researched and scholarly work, had documented the ineptitude of the Soviet Party-military leadership that was largely responsible for the retreats and heavy losses during the first months of the German invasion. Soviet military doctrine proceeded from the probability of a new world war, which would take on a long, drawn-out character. In this war a coalition of imperialist powers could move against the Soviet Union. The invasion by Adolf Hitler showed that the very basis of Soviet planning and assumptions had been incorrect. Nekrich also reminded readers of the extent to which Stalin's military purges had weakened the Soviet officer corps. In 1940 numerous measures were taken to strengthen individual commands. The institution of military commissars, introduced in 1937, was abolished. In its place the position of deputy to the commander for political affairs was established.
