The Soviet Defence Enigma: Estimating Costs and Burden (A Sipri Publication)

Although a realistic appraisal of Soviet defense efforts is crucial to strategic planning and foreign policy analysis, knowledge in this area is limited to incomplete Soviet figures and unsatisfactory U.S. estimates. Using newly available sources of economic, scientific, and technical military information, an international team of defense authorities here reviews the current knowledge of Soviet defense expenditure, and introduces the most recent and original alternative methods of understanding and appraisal. What emerges is a fascinating account of what is perhaps the single most important "unknown" factor in the study of international affairs.