What happened in the USSR in the 1940s?

1940-1950. The 40s were the hardest times for Soviet Union. The World War II took the lives of 20 million Soviet Citizens. Defeating the powerful Nazi Army, which overrun Europe required Soviets to mobilize and utilize all of its human and material resources.

What was the Soviet Union main source of income to fuel communism?

oil and gas
A major strength of the Soviet economy was its enormous supply of oil and gas, which became much more valuable as exports after the world price of oil skyrocketed in the 1970s. As Daniel Yergin notes, the Soviet economy in its final decades was “heavily dependent on vast natural resources–oil and gas in particular”.

When was natural gas discovered in Russia?

While there were nearly twenty years between the discovery of oil deposits in the Volga-Urals region and the start of extraction (from 1929 until the end of the 1940s), this transition only took eight years in Western Siberia (1960–1968). Gas was first extracted there in 1953.

Did the Soviet Union import oil?

Beginning in 1973, in an effort to earn hard currency, the Soviet Union began to import oil from Third World countries for reexport to Western industrialized countries. This activity slowed from 1980 to 1982, recovered in 1983 through 1985, and continued to increase in 1986.

What was USSR called before 1922?

However, before 1922 the Soviet Union was multiple independent Soviet Republics, e.g. the RSFSR and Ukrainian SSR. At its peak the USSR consisted of the Russian SFSR, Byelorussian SSR, Ukrainian SSR, Lithuanian SSR, Latvian SSR, Estonian SSR, Georgian SSR, Kazakh SSR, and others, as well as multiple Satellite States.

Why did Soviet Union fail?

Gorbachev’s decision to allow elections with a multi-party system and create a presidency for the Soviet Union began a slow process of democratization that eventually destabilized Communist control and contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Did USSR grow faster than Japan?

From 1928 to 1970 the USSR did not grow as fast as Japan, but was arguably the second most successful economy in the world. Conversely, the Soviet policies that were decisive for increasing growth did not have dire consequences.

Who gets gas from Russia?

The largest importers of Russian gas in the European Union are Germany and Italy, accounting together for almost half of the EU’s gas imports from Russia. Other larger Russian gas importers (over 5 billion cubic meter per year) in the European Union are France, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Austria and Slovakia.

Is Russia rich in gas?

As of 2013, Russia is the world’s second-largest producer of natural gas, producing an estimated more than 669 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas a year, and the world’s largest natural gas exporter, shipping an estimated 196 bcm a year.

Where did the Soviet Union get its oil?

1975-1985), Soviet authorities exploited fuel resources from inhospitable areas, notably Siberia and the Far East.

When did the Soviet Union start producing gas?

A separate Soviet gas industry was created in 1943. Large natural gas reserves discovered in Siberia and the Ural and Volga regions in the 1970s and 1980s enabled the Soviet Union to become a major gas producer. Gas exploration, development, and distribution were centralized in the Ministry of Gas Industry, which was created in 1965.

What kind of energy did the Soviet Union use?

Gas made up 36 percent of the total energy output in the USSR; oil comprised 36 percent; and coal amounted to 20 percent. 1 There were ongoing debates about the resource dependence of the Soviet, and later, Russian economy.

What kind of minerals did the Soviet Union produce?

The Soviet Union became the world’s leading producer of oil, coal, iron ore and cement; manganese, gold, natural gas and other minerals were also of major importance. However, information about the Soviet famine of 1932–1933 was suppressed by the Soviet authorities until perestroika .

Who was the leader of the Soviet Union in 1950?

1950 – Soviet Union and China sign 30-year alliance treaty. 1950-53 – Outbreak of Korean war sees relations between the Soviet Union and the West deteriorate markedly. 1953 March – Stalin dies and is succeeded by Georgi Malenkov as prime minister and by Nikita Khrushchev as first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party.