ABSTRACT
The death of the Soviet dictator ushered in a period of frequent policy changes accompanied by fluctuations in the relative power positions of the members of the ‘collective leadership’ that ran the state for a short time. The greater part of the chapter is taken up with an examination of a far-reaching struggle. A collective leadership was formed immediately after Stalin’s death. Malenkov’s ‘new course’ aimed at stepping up the production of consumer goods. Compulsory government procurement at very low prices virtually killed incentive, which was diverted into the private sector. In the period covered by the chapter Soviet foreign policy departed further from Stalinist traditions than did domestic policy, although the same hesitancy and experimental approach were in evidence. As a result of Stalin’s isolationist policy toward all non-Communist countries, by 1953 it had become very difficult for Soviet foreign policy to intervene with positive effect in international affairs beyond the bounds of the Soviet bloc.
