How much did the gulag contribute to the industrialization of the USSR?
>>1252858
It didn't, slave labor is very inefficient. At best it was low-level resource extraction in Russian colonies in Siberia, hardly anything industrial. Actual industrialization was done by foreigners, most importantly Americans with American equipment.
>>1253035
What were Americans doing in the USSR with its state run industry?
>>1253090
Industrialization. Stalin pays money, they build for him a factories and shit.
>>1253099
How common was this? I know about Magnitogorsk, but I thought that was kind of unique
>>1253115
There was some more help from various American businessmen. Doesn't know how significant it was in the grand scheme.
>>1253035
>>1253131
>Stalin's 5 year plans had nothing to do with the USSR's industrialization, it was all done by Americans! FREEDOOOM!!
>>1253115
No, it was extremely widespread. Such giants as Kharkiv Tractor Plant, Dnieper Hydroelectric Station and of course GAZ were built with American aid or American licensing.
Russians love complaining about dem evil Americans bringing Ivan down but money talks and Americans had no problem building stuff for Soviets, especially since Great Depression was going on at the time.
Hell, there were even stores specializing in trading with foreigners in order to accumulate money for industrialization.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torgsin
>>1253035
What about the building of railways, roads and canals? That had to have been a boost because it enabled the transport of raw materials and people?
>>1253178
Perhaps, though I can't say much about that. I know that many railways built by prisoners were essentially useless and quickly became abandoned, but Moscow Canal was pretty useful, I suppose.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salekhard%E2%80%93Igarka_Railway for example, though that's post-war.
>As the project progressed, it became clear that there was actually little demand for this railway. In 1952, officials permitted a reduced tempo of work on the project. Construction was stopped in 1953 after Stalin's death. A total of 434 miles (698 km) of railway were completed at an official cost of 260 million rubles, later estimated to be near 42 billion 1953 rubles (2.5% of total Soviet capital investment at the time, or about $10 billion in 1950 dollars). The project was quickly destroyed by frost heaves and structural failures arising from underconstruction. At least 11 locomotives and 60,000 tons of metal were abandoned, and bridges have decayed or burned down. However, the corridor's telephone network remained in service until 1976.
>>1252858
It didn't really, but why would it? Its only purpose was to reform prisoners.
>but muh arkipalego
We live in the post-archive world, we know it wasn't that bad.
![gaz_a[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/9mVhFMP.jpg "gaz_a[1].jpg")
>>1253170
>fulfilling the five year plan
>first Soviet Ford
WE WUZ TRUCKZ N SHIET
