Question

Why was the Soviet Union less affected by the Great Depression than other European Nations?​

Answer 1

Answer:

Explanation:

thing to keep in mind that during the early 20th century the economy was global at that point. Therefore, even in the closed off economy of the Soviet Union there were repercussions when the Great Depression hit America on the other side of the globe. Keep in mind that not all of these were negative, either.

For example the Soviet Union benefited from the Great Depression by using surplus labor in western countries for specialists in the growing Soviet Union. The Soviet Union brought in engineers, contractors, and farmers, most from Western countries and a lot from the United States. In Kotkin’s book, Magnet Mountain, he describes that a great number of Americans were brought in to build the Soviet Union’s “Gary, Indiana,” at the time the largest producer of steel in the world. Also, in my own specialization there was a great many of farmers from the United States that were brought in to help develop the plan for “mega-farms” in the Soviet Union. These farms would be larger than even farms in the United States, and they used the specialization of the American farmers to plan and organize these farms using their experience. The ability to hire and move these men to the Soviet Union was likely easier because of the depression, the lack of work these people may have had, and in result made it so the Soviet Union could industrialize at a faster rate, and use American experience to do so.