Would the USSR survive if it wasn't for the arms and space race

[Athenian]

Hey fellow histuromites. I have a simple yet not simplistic question. Would the USSR survive if it took no part in the arms and space race and did not antagonize with the USA for world hegemony? If yes maybe it could invest further in the development of its people both economically and culturally maybe even to surpass the capitalist west. What do you think about it? From what I know the USSR devoted a huge percentage of its annual GDP in order to compete with the US. Maybe the Soviet people would be better both individally and as a society than it were eventually.

Athenian

 

[Rodger]

Welcome to the forum. I think the USSR would have survived longer, but not until today. We have seen in recent years peoples all over the world desiring self determination. The push for autonomy among the other Soviet republics would have been strong.

 

[peccavi]

Hey fellow histuromites. I have a simple yet not simplistic question. Would the USSR survive if it took no part in the arms and space race and did not antagonize with the USA for world hegemony? If yes maybe it could invest further in the development of its people both economically and culturally maybe even to surpass the capitalist west. What do you think about it? From what I know the USSR devoted a huge percentage of its annual GDP in order to compete with the US. Maybe the Soviet people would be better both individally and as a society than it were eventually.

Athenian

At what point are you suggesting this happens - 1945 and Stalin does not develop a nuclear weapon, or Khrushchev coming to power or maybe Brezhnev?

 

[notgivenaway]

There were many structural issues that started under Stalin, and continued under Krhusechev. Part of the reason for Chernobyl stemmed from this, and Gorbachev's reforms were the coup de grace.

 

[The Blond Beast]

Probably not. The arms race was obviously an economic drain, but if not for that, NATO would've annihilated them, and it probably would've been even more catastrophic.

Good question.

 

[Poly]

Hey fellow histuromites. I have a simple yet not simplistic question. Would the USSR survive if it took no part in the arms and space race and did not antagonize with the USA for world hegemony? If yes maybe it could invest further in the development of its people both economically and culturally maybe even to surpass the capitalist west. What do you think about it? From what I know the USSR devoted a huge percentage of its annual GDP in order to compete with the US. Maybe the Soviet people would be better both individally and as a society than it were eventually.

Athenian

Trying to match the USA is what brought the USSR down...


It's war in Afghanistan was a war it simply couldn't afford.


The Soviet Army took too much resources to maintain...something had to give.

Problem was that the USSR was utterly convinced the West was about to invade them again....

 

[Menshevik]

Problem was that the USSR was utterly convinced the West was about to invade them again....

What is this statement based on?

I've never heard of this.

 

[Poly]

What is this statement based on?

I've never heard of this.

Suvorov talks about in his book "Inside the Soviet Army"


https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Soviet-Army-Viktor-Suvorov/dp/0425071103



I've also heard from a British army intelligence officer who was an observer on a Soviet Army exercise.

In the West we were led to believe that the Big Bad Russian Bear was hell bent on invading us...when all the Soviet Union wanted to do was protect itself from an invasion from the West.
It would be comical if it wasn't so tragic.