How would be Molotov-led USSR in the post war?

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What if Molotov had somehow took over control of the USSR in the post war, how would he affect the soviet politics in the cold war? And considering that he lived until 1986, how far could his reign go in this tl?

The PoD is up to you, but the USSR still need to take over half of europe at the end of the war, but not exact the same borders as OTL
 
He "DIED GLORIOUSLY IN DEFENCE OF THE MOTHERLAND AFTER WORKING TIRELESLLY AFTER COMRADE STALIN DEATH!"

Nah, JK, he was shot in the back after Stalin wasn't around to protect him anymore

For some reason I can't see Molotov having the stomach for all that, perhaps the time he spent in diplomacy.

In this scenario I imagine the high post being handed to him by a clique who, after having survived Stalin and being spared Beria, have a healthy fear of a strong autocrat and favour a more collegial form of governance.
 
In all probability Molotov would be first among equals in a collective leadership situation. Let's assume that the POD is that Stalin dies of a heart attack in October 1945 (IOTL he suffered a major heart attack at that time). Molotov would probably first become Chairman of the Council of Ministers (a post he held from 1930-1941), while Andrei Zhdanov would become General Secretary. Let's further assume that after Zhdanov's death (which would occur at least by 1948 like OTL) Molotov is able to outmaneuver his rivals and either become General Secretary (which would probably require him to give up the chairmanship of the Council of Ministers) or get an ally/protégé into the position.

The important thing to remember about Molotov is that he was a hardcore Stalinist to the end of his life. This means that, minus the purges and anti-Semitism of Stalin, the early Cold War would probably look very similar to IOTL. The middle Cold War would look much different however. There would be no destalinization, and peaceful coexistence would be off the table (so relations with the US would stay in a deep freeze). Over time Molotov's rivals (which include Kaganovich, Malenkov, Khrushchev, etc.) would either be retired early or sent to the hinterlands/unimportant ambassadorships). The people who replace them would largely be of the same Stalinist mold as Molotov, since he would be unwilling to trust and become a mentor to more liberal politicians. Molotov probably dies sometime in the mid-1960s to 1970s (he suffered 7 heart attacks IOTL, and the added stress of being leader would certainly hurt his health). Ultimately the USSR would probably collapse sooner than IOTL, due to the lack of necessary reforms and greater military spending.
 
In all probability Molotov would be first among equals in a collective leadership situation. Let's assume that the POD is that Stalin dies of a heart attack in October 1945 (IOTL he suffered a major heart attack at that time). Molotov would probably first become Chairman of the Council of Ministers (a post he held from 1930-1941), while Andrei Zhdanov would become General Secretary. Let's further assume that after Zhdanov's death (which would occur at least by 1948 like OTL) Molotov is able to outmaneuver his rivals and either become General Secretary (which would probably require him to give up the chairmanship of the Council of Ministers) or get an ally/protégé into the position.

The important thing to remember about Molotov is that he was a hardcore Stalinist to the end of his life. This means that, minus the purges and anti-Semitism of Stalin, the early Cold War would probably look very similar to IOTL. The middle Cold War would look much different however. There would be no destalinization, and peaceful coexistence would be off the table (so relations with the US would stay in a deep freeze). Over time Molotov's rivals (which include Kaganovich, Malenkov, Khrushchev, etc.) would either be retired early or sent to the hinterlands/unimportant ambassadorships). The people who replace them would largely be of the same Stalinist mold as Molotov, since he would be unwilling to trust and become a mentor to more liberal politicians. Molotov probably dies sometime in the mid-1960s to 1970s (he suffered 7 heart attacks IOTL, and the added stress of being leader would certainly hurt his health). Ultimately the USSR would probably collapse sooner than IOTL, due to the lack of necessary reforms and greater military spending.

So he would be a non paranoic neither brutal Stalin?
 
What do you think about this, @fasquardon ?

I don't know too much about Molotov himself. I'm very curious to know what those more knowledgeable have to say, especially as Molotov is a front-runner to succeed Stalin if Stalin dies just before or during Barbarossa.

If I remember rightly, even Molotov was in favor of closer cooperation with the US in the immediate post-war period - Stalin convinced him to be more wary OTL - so with him in charge there may be no cold war as we know it. Also, it's worth remembering that absolutely no-one, not even the committed Stalinists who had merrily murdered hundreds of thousands of their fellow human beings on Stalin's order (which was pretty much the entire roster of possible successors - even Khrushchev had blood on his hands from the Stalin era) wanted to continue doing things that way. All of the "Stalinists" wanted a better sort of Stalinism for the future.

Ultimately the USSR would probably collapse sooner than IOTL, due to the lack of necessary reforms and greater military spending.

I doubt that there would be no reform. Reform might be limited to those things that could be framed as "Stalinist progress", but I am dubious that this would really take much off the table. One could justify an awful lot (good and bad) with Stalin's writings.

Ultimately the USSR would probably collapse sooner than IOTL, due to the lack of necessary reforms and greater military spending.

On the other side of the coin, the USSR might last longer due to avoiding the worse mistakes they made OTL.

Heck, just avoiding Gorbachev is probably enough.

fasquardon
 
On the other side of the coin, the USSR might last longer due to avoiding the worse mistakes they made OTL.

Heck, just avoiding Gorbachev is probably enough.

Yes, usually what makes a system collapse is not economical ruin, but the instability caused by reforms

Maybe this neo-Stalininst soviet union could hav lasted until today, like a eastern european north korea, but not as poor as OTL NK
 
Characteristics of Molotov one of his employees -
"[Derogatory characteristics:" iron ass, "" chief party secretary "," uncomplaining executor of Stalin's instructions "] were invented by people who had never worked with Molotov, and most often he was not even seen in the eyes. I worked with him for many years and I know that Molotov was not always an obedient executor of instructions, he changed depending on the circumstances, he was not even a primitive clerk, as he is now [2000] often painted ...

[The strongest part of Molotov-politics was] the ability to accurately assess their capabilities. Molotov always knew that in any business there is a border, which can not be crossed even to him. In addition, Vyacheslav Mikhailovich was a very strong organizer. Here ... The decisions were made quickly ... Molotov did not tolerate verbosity at all ...

Molotov generally tried to talk less and less often. He stuttered and, I thought, was embarrassed by this ...

If we talk about the characteristics of Molotov, we must say that he constantly had a desire to improve everything. Maybe because it is typical of most pedantic people. But perhaps also because Molotov's engineering talent remained unrealized: because of his involvement in underground party work, he did not graduate from the St. Petersburg Polytechnic Institute ...

Everyone knew that Molotov did not tolerate any untidiness. Neither in work, nor in clothes. He himself was always dressed modestly, but neatly. And he demanded the same from others."
First, his beloved wife, Polina (he was in general a good family man, and yes - Polina the daughter of the Jewish people) suffered from Stalin's repressions. Rather, he took a pro-Stalinist position in the 60's because of the need to resist Khrushchev.
Secondly, the criticism of the "cult of personality" is unavoidable, for it guarantees the inviolability of the new leadership. And we must understand that the active anti-Stalin policy began only after the 22nd Congress of the CPSU.
Thirdly - Molotov wrote about the fact that socialism in the USSR is not built - it is clearly not a typical Stalinist.
 
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