Hint:
i) From 1927 to 1953, Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the leader of the Soviet Union. He was also the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and the Chairman of the Soviet Union's Council of Ministers.
ii) For more than two decades, Joseph Stalin dominated the Soviet Union, instituting a reign of terror and death while modernising Russia and aiding in the defeat of Nazism.
Complete answer:
Joseph Stalin’s main goal for the Soviet Union -
- The rapid industrialization of Russia was Stalin's main goal.
- Apart from keeping Stalin in power, he wanted the Soviet Union to become a developed nation in order to protect itself from military action.
- Stalin worked tirelessly to bring the Soviet Union's industrialization to fruition. He knew that the countries around them would inevitably militarily challenge the Soviets, and that industrialization would provide them with the means to fight back. When it came to deciding whether to help the agricultural or industrial sectors, he exiled the Kulaks and peasants and introduced collectivized agriculture.
- Five-year plans established quotas for factories and employees. He wanted to boost productivity and penalized employees who didn't meet their targets. Political prisoners were not excluded from Labour requirements, and jails were also required to meet production targets.
- When the time came, the Soviets managed to repel the Germans (barely and at considerable cost).
- Stalin forced rapid industrialization and agricultural land collectivization, resulting in millions of deaths from starvation and the internment of others in Labour camps. During World War II, his Red Army aided in the defeat of Nazi Germany.
Note: Joseph Stalin governed the Soviet Union as a tyrant from 1928 to 1953, transforming the world from an agrarian peasant society to a global superpower. However, the price was high: Stalin was directly responsible for the deaths of millions of Soviet people.
