War Economy Potential

the objective possibilities of a country (or coalition of countries) that may be utilized to strengthen its capabilities for defense and for waging war. The war economy potential is determined by the following factors: the socioeconomic and political system of the state; the size and structure of production; the availability of productive capacity of industry and above all of heavy and military industry; the development of agriculture; the condition of its lines of communication and the presence of appropriate means of transportation and communication; the size and moral-political level of the population; the level of development of science and technology; the state of the finances; the availability of natural resources and the degree of their exploitation; the geographic distribution of the productive forces; the scale and depth of cooperation of production and of internal and external economic relations; and the size of material stocks and reserves. An important index of war economy potential is the possibility of quick conversion of enterprises of the major sectors of the national economy for the organization of war production according to wartime plans. In comparing the war economy potential of countries with different social systems, it is very important to take into consideration the specific principles of these countries’ economic development. A high degree of organization and planning of the Soviet Union’s economy and the labor heroism of the Soviet people during the Great Patriotic War permitted the fullest and most efficient utilization of all the resources of the country for the achievement of victory over the enemy.