SINO-SOVIET BLOC ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES IN UNDERDEVELOPED AREAS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP92B01090R000700010054-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 9, 2005
• Sequence Number: 54
• Publication Date: March 3, 1958
• Content Type: REPORT

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Copy W 361.
SECRET
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BIWEEKLY REPORT
SINO - SOVIET BLOC
ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES
IN UNDERDEVELOPED AREAS
EIC-WGR 1/54
3 March 1958
PREPARED BY THE WORKING GROUP
ON SINO-SOVIET BLOC ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES
IN UNDERDEVELOPED AREAS
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WARNING
THIS MATERIAL CONTAINS INFORMATION AFFECT-
ING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE OF THE UNITED STA7?ES
WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE ESPIONAGE LAWS,
TITLE 18, USC, SECTIONS 793 AND 794, THE TRANSMIS-
SION OR REVELATION OF WHICH IN ANY MANNER TO
AN UNAUTHORIZED PERSON IS PROHIBITED BY LAW.
These biweekly reports on "Sino-Soviet Bloc Economic Ac-
tivities in Underdeveloped Areas" are prepared and issued
by a Working Group of the Economic Intelligence Comn?mit-
tee, including representatives of the Departments of State,
the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, Commerce, and Agrk:ul-
ture; the International Cooperation Administration; the
Office of the Secretary of Defense; and the Central Intelli-
gence Agency. Their purpose is to provide up-to-date fac-
tual information on significant developments in the a .,o-
nomic relations of Sino-Soviet Bloc countries with under-
developed countries of the Free World. The EIC-R-14 series
of reports, under the same title, provide :periodic summaries
and analytical interpretations of these developments.
Printed and Disseminated by the
Central Intelligence Agency
SECRET
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Summary of Events
14 - 27 February 1958
In the period from 1 January 1954 through February 1958 the Sino-
Soviet Bloc extended nearly $2 billion in credits and grants to under-
developed countries of the Free World, of which about $380 million were
for the purchase of arms. It is estimated that during the last 6 months
of 1957, 1, 585 Bloc industrial, agricultural, and other professional
specialists were working in underdeveloped countries.
Afghanistan has officially informed the US that the Afghan arms
credit agreement with the USSR amounts to $25 million and the one with
Czechoslovakia, $7. 4 million. Reports on the delivery of Soviet mili-
tary equipment and supplies suggest that their value greatly exceeds
the stated amount of the loan. It is also reported that the Afghan armed
forces are being reorganized, modernized, and expanded under Soviet
guidance and assistance.
The governments of Ceylon and the USSR signed a trade and pay-
ments agreement on 8 February and an economic cooperation agree-
ment on 25 February. The trade and payments agreement, for which
no values were indicated, is a 1-year accord with automatic renewal.
Under the economic cooperation agreement, Ceylon is to receive a
credit of approximately $30 million from the USSR for development
projects and flood rehabilitation work as well as technical assistance
and training.
Other events during the period 14 27 February 1958 include the
report that the USSR has renewed its offer to Indonesia to make avail-
able foreign exchange in any amount required as a result of present
difficulties. At the same time, the Indonesian government is engaged
in discussions with Chinese authorities for a credit to Indonesia of
$250 million, of which about $220 million reportedly is to be used
for purchasing arms in Eastern Europe. It is also reported that the
Indonesian government has accepted "in principle" a Soviet offer of
ships involving four 4, 000-DWT vessels and 6 smaller ships.
S-E-C-R-E-T
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An air agreement was recently signed between India and the USSR
calling for weekly flights between Delhi and Moscow via Tashkent to
begin 15 August 1958. The USSR has also agreed to defer for a period
of 3.years the payment of annual installments that will be due on Soviet
machinery presently being delivered under the $132-million Bhilai,
steel mill loan.
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S-E-C-R-E-T
CONTENTS
Page
I. General (Sino-Soviet Bloc Credits and Grants and Non-
military Technicians in Underdeveloped Countries
of the Free World) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
II,. South Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1. Soviet Grant of 3-Year Grace Period Under
Bhilai Steel Mill Loan . . . . . . . . . . 1
2. Signing of Indian-Soviet Air Agreement . . . 4
B. Signing of Ceylonese-Soviet Trade and Economic
Cooperation Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . 5
C. Afghan Military Involvement with the USSR . . . 6
1. Possible Chinese Communist Aid . . . . . .
2. Status of Bloc Offers to Supply Ships . . . .
3. Soviet Offer of Foreign Exchange . . . . . .
B. Soviet Aid Overtures to Thailand . . . . . .
IV. Middle East and Africa
A. Soviet Bloc Purchases of Syrian Cotton . .
B. Soviet Offer of Economic Assistance to Jordan . .
C. Turkish-Soviet Contracts . . . . . . . .
9
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Tables
1. Credits and Grants of the Sino-Soviet Bloc to Under-
developed Countries of the Free World, 1 January
1954 - 28 February 1958 . . . . . . . . . . .
Page
2. Estimated Number of Sino-Soviet Bloc Nonmilitary
Technicians in Underdeveloped Countries of the
Free World, July-December 1957 . . . . 3
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