TAKE 2 OF 8 -- ABALKIN CONDEMNS '500 DAYS' RECOVERY PROGRAM

This document is a transcript of a political discussion regarding the future of the Soviet Union and the implementation of the '500 Days' economic recovery program. The text features a dialogue between Garifullina and Abalkin, in which Abalkin expresses significant skepticism regarding the proposed economic reforms. Abalkin argues that the '500 Days' program is based on a 'mystery effect' and suggests that its proponents are offering the public a false sense of a painless transition without economic hardship. The discussion touches upon the constitutional and sovereign status of the USSR, emphasizing the need for a unified economic and monetary system, similar to the Federal Reserve in the United States or the Deutsche Bundesbank in the FRG. Abalkin criticizes the haste with which the program is being pushed, suggesting that it effectively treats the disintegration of the USSR as a fait accompli without sufficient public or political debate. He compares the proposed economic union to the British Commonwealth of Nations or the old CEMA, noting that the program ignores the complexities of interethnic relations and the rights of nations within the Union.