ABSTRACT
The East European political system is essentially the Soviet political system. It was transplanted after World War II—some thirty years after the October Revolution, by the Soviet Army, Soviet agents, or by-products of the Soviet political system. The existence of the partiocracy is not only a precondition of the East European leaders own existence and tenure, but also a guarantee of preserving Soviet influence in Eastern Europe. Under certain circumstances, the USSR may tolerate or even sanction some changes of substance, so long as they are introduced by the communist party and presented as changes of format. The Polish example of 1980–1982 showed that the Soviet Union will not tolerate a change caused by social unrest or prompted at the demand of the population. The anti-Soviet attitude of Albania and Yugoslavia did not prompt an armed Soviet interference.
