Cabinet of Ministers of the USSR (russian: Кабинет Министров СССР) functioned as the administrative, executive body and the government after the
Council of Ministers
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/ shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or ...
was dissolved. It consisted of the
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
, his 7 deputies (2 first deputy Prime Ministers and 5 deputy Prime Ministers) and the 36 ministers and 1
State Committee of the Soviet Union
A USSR State Committee was a central government body within the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Unlike a ministry, which was responsible for the management of the country's economic and social resources within a particular ...
. Its leading decision-making organ was the Presidium, which consisted of the prime minister, his deputies, and an Administrator of affairs.
The Cabinet of Ministers was to be the responsibility of the
President of the Soviet Union
The president of the Soviet Union (russian: Президент Советского Союза, Prezident Sovetskogo Soyuza), officially the president of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (), abbreviated as president of the USSR (), was ...
and the
Supreme Soviet
The Supreme Soviet (russian: Верховный Совет, Verkhovny Sovet, Supreme Council) was the common name for the legislative bodies (parliaments) of the Soviet socialist republics (SSR) in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USS ...
and was accountable to both institutions. All newly formed Cabinets were to submit their program to the Supreme Soviet for approval. The Cabinet of Ministers was obliged to tender its resignation if the sitting president stepped down.
The Cabinet of Ministers was responsible for formulating and executing the All-Union state budget, administering defence enterprises and overseeing space research, implementing foreign policy, crime fighting, maintain defence and social security, and worked alongside the republican governments to develop financial and credit policy, administer fuel and power supplies and transport system, and developing welfare and social programs. In addition, it was responsible for coordinating All-Union policy on science, technology, patents, use of airspace, prices, general economic policy, housing, environmental protection and military appointments. It also had the right to issue
decrees and
resolutions (Law).
The Cabinet of Ministers existed alongside the Federation Council, the
Presidential Council of the Soviet Union
The Presidential Council was created in March 1990 to replace the Politburo as the major policymaking body in the USSR. According to article 127 in the Soviet constitution the job of the presidential council was "to implement the basic thrust of US ...
and other executive bodies that reported directly to the president. However, as the sole executive organ responsible for the ministers and the economy, it was the most important.
The ministries in the Cabinet were, including the
KGB:
* Ministry of Agriculture & Food.
* Ministry of Automobile & Agricultural Machine Building.
* Ministry of Aviation Industry.
* Ministry of Civil Aviation.
* Ministry of Coal Industry.
* Ministry of Communications.
* Ministry of Construction of Oil & Gas Industry.
* Ministry of Culture.
* Ministry of Defence.
* Ministry of defence Industry.
* Ministry of Electrical Engineering,
* Ministry of Electronics Industry.
* Ministry of Environmental Protection.
* Ministry of Finance.
* Ministry of Fish Industry.
* Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
* Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations.
* Ministry of Forestry Industry.
* Ministry of General Machine Building.
* Ministry of Geology.
* Ministry of Health.
* Ministry of Installation & Special Construction Work.
* Ministry of The Interior.
* Ministry of Justice.
* Ministry of Machine Tool & Tool Building Industry.
* Ministry of Medical & Microbiological Industry.
* Ministry of Merchant Marine.
* Ministry of Metallurgy.
* Ministry of Nuclear Power Industry.
* Ministry of Oil and Gas Industry.
* Ministry of Power and Electrification.
* Ministry of Radio Industry.
* Ministry of Railways.
* Ministry of Shipbuilding.
* Ministry of Trade.
* Ministry of Transport Construction.
References
*
1991 establishments in the Soviet Union
1991 disestablishments in the Soviet Union
{{USSR-stub