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ID:
079143
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2007.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Between 1932 and 1939, the USSR adopted a new approach to the exploration and development of its Arctic territories by creating the Main Administration of the Northern Sea Route (GUSMP). The Soviets' principal strategy here was one of hypercentralization: beforehand, they had entrusted Arctic work to a variety of agencies, but after the First Five-Year Plan, they became convinced that the uniquely rigorous conditions of the extreme north made it desirable to vest a single all-purpose agency with nearly complete authority over the Soviet Arctic. GUSMP enjoyed many successes, including several high-profile polar exploits that won international renown, but, in the end, was unable to satisfy the dictates of the state, especially with respect to economic development. In 1938-1939, most of GUSMP's authority had been stripped away; the primary beneficiary of its downfall was the notorious Main Administration for Construction in the Far North (Dal'stroi). GUSMP's failure was due not only to flaws in its own design and operation, but also to the unreasonable demands of the regime. Regardless, it managed before and after 1939 to develop the northern coastal infrastructure to an extent sufficient to support the USSR's military needs by the time war came in 1941.
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| 2 |
ID:
079144
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2007.
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| Summary/Abstract |
By pre-war standards the Northern Sea Route saw intensive use during the Great Patriotic War as a conduit for goods from both within and outside the Soviet Union, despite German attempts to interfere with its operation.
1The translation of this article from Russian was made possible thanks to support from the Center for Military and Strategic Studies of the University of Calgary. This article originally appeared in Russian in M.N. Suprun (ed.), Severnie konvoi. Issledovaniia, vosponinaniia, dokumenti. Vipusk 4 (Arkhangel'sk: Izdatel'stvo "Pravda Severa," 2000). Maps covering the region discussed in this article are provided with the introduction to this special issue of the Journal of Slavic Military Studies on "Russian and Soviet Naval Power in the Arctic 1914-1945
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| 3 |
ID:
079145
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2007.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation, the naval component of which received the codename Operation "West," saw the Soviet Northern Fleet play a major role in the liberation of the Russian Artic in late 1944. The capabilities of the Northern Fleet had been substantially enhanced by Lend-Lease aid since the summer of 1941 and British and American vessels provided in lieu of the Soviet share of Italian naval assets. Nonetheless, it seems that a fear of losing major naval units led to timidity in their use and only partial fulfillment of the objectives of the operation.
1The translation of this article from Russian was made possible thanks to support from the Center for Military and Strategic Studies of the University of Calgary. Maps covering the region discussed in this article are provided with the introduction to this special issue of the Journal of Slavic Military Studies on 'Russian and Soviet Naval Power in the Arctic 1914-1945'
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