stability and stagnation under Brezhnev 1964-82

what were Brezhnev’s views

following Khrushchev government effectively ended reform. Brezhnev believed that the revolution had been completed by lenin and stalin. Therefore he argued that party needed to resist change and should instead focus on stability

restoration

Brezhnev reversed K’s key reforms in a process called restoration

• he reversed decentralisation re establishing the all union ministries that K had abolished

• he ended the split between industrial and agricultural wings of the party

stability of cadres

Brezhnev abolished many of Ks reform specifically he reversed fixed term positions however there was not a return to Stalinist terror, rather B controlled the party by offering party members security. B’s policy stability of the cadres discouraged demotions or changes in personnel within the government ensuring job security for party members

political stagnation 1970-85

restoration led to period of political stagnation

gerontocracy

the stability of the cadres meant that government officials stayed in the same job for years. As a result, few young people enter the government an the average age of government official’s increased. indeed, between 1964 and 1971 only two people were promoted to the politburo the average age rose from 58 in 1966 to 75 in 1982 Brezhnev style of government was nicknamed a gerontocracy which mean rule of old people

inefficiency

as the government aged it became less effective. under B there were extremely limited opportunities for promotion. consequently officials were effectively stuck in dead end jobs with few opportunities for advancement. As a result stability of cadres provided no incentives for hard work because there were so few opportunities for promotion

corruption

under B sackings were rare. career development and options for progression were also extremely limited opportunities this created the context for huge corruption. Soviet officials who could not grow rich through hard work and promotion used their positions to grow rich knowing they were unlikely to be disciplined

One form of corruption was to sell luxury goods on the black market. Brezhnev was implicated in the corruption his daughter Galina Brezhnev was able to access to diamonds. one of her lovers smuggled millions of pounds worth of diamonds out the USSR he was eventually prosecuted after Brezhnev’s death

moral decline

B’s rule also led to a change in the character of government. Under Lenin Stalin and K soviet government had followed a utopian vision these leaders had encouraged soviet people to work hard in order to build socialism. B believed that the job was done he talked about revolution in other parts of the world such as Zimbabwe mexico peru but he no longer encouraged revolutionary sprit at home

as a result soviet people became increasingly cynical, for a while B believed tat socialism had been achieved the majority of Russians realised there were major problems of corruption and stagnation in the union

Andropov and Chernenko

after B death the USSR was ruled by Andropov and chernenko both were close to B so they rejected reform nonetheless Andropov and chernenko initiated policy’s to end corruption and increase efficiency

• he abandoned the stability of the cadres policy replacing a quarter of senior officials

• his most important initiative was an anti corruption campaign

the anti corruption campaign attacked senior figures such as red army generals and minister of the interior Nicolai shchelokov he also prosecuted the guy who smuggled diamonds out of the USSR