Re: Andre Gunder Frank article

["Chris Doss" <nomorebounces@xxxxxxx>]

Yeah, but I mean post-Cold War (which would be post-1999).

This is what Pankratov wrote about the subject in an article on Russia and oil I posted a short while ago:

The gloom-and-doom talk about Russia s vulnerability to oil prices reminds of another piece of related mythology   how the big drop in oil prices in the second half of 80 s decade (allegedly engineered by Saudis with US approval) was the main reason behind the collapse of the Soviet Union. This urban legend is quite appealing, in particular, to some Republican right and supporters of the current US administration, by giving much credit to Reagan policies in the demise of USSR, and providing some justification of why many in American elite, the Bush clan in particular, are ever so chummy with Saudis, despite their obvious links with terrorism and Islamic extremism.

This legend is plain silly. Indeed, there was a very sharp, short-term drop in prices in early 1986, and perhaps Saudis did conspire with Reagan administration to facilitate it. The prices soon rebounded, though   not to very high level of early 80 s, but to quite comfortable level (the average value in 1986-1990 in 2003 dollars was around $26/barrel   pretty close to the average of the recent five years). Moreover, shortfall in revenues due to lower oil prices was more than compensated by large increase of gas exports to Western Europe around this time, as the newly build gas pipeline (construction of which Reagan administration tried to block) began pumping at near-full capacity. Soviet Union didn t fall because some Saudi machinations. Its political and economic system was too ossified by that time, and when Gorbachev government attempted to reform it, the whole structure simply crumbled instead of being rejuvenated.

-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Perelman <michael@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: PEN-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Thu, 3 Jun 2004 07:29:39 -0700
Subject: Re: [PEN-L] Andre Gunder Frank article

>
> william Casey worked with the Saudis to drop the price of oil to harm the USSR.
>
> On Thu, Jun 03, 2004 at 06:07:10PM +0400, "Chris Doss"  wrote:
> > I wrote:
> >
> > There is little evidence the US deliberately tried to wreck the Russian economy
> > (not that it didn't give crap advice).
> >
> > ---
> > Wait, I may have to take that back, if Frank is referring to early (not late) Reagan-era and not Bush I and Clinton-era policies.
>
> --
> Michael Perelman
> Economics Department
> California State University
> Chico, CA 95929
>
> Tel. 530-898-5321
> E-Mail michael at ecst.csuchico.edu
>