If the Second World War was the impetus for the post-war political modernisation of Western Europe, having become the logical conclusion of the relatively short period of domination by the Nazi regime in Germany, then for the USSR and Russia, the need for reconstruction was dictated by the experience of 70 years of domination by the Communist regime, the culmination of which was Stalin's terrorist dictatorship.
Dacă cel de Al Doilea Război Mondial a declanşat modernizarea politică postbelică a Europei Occidentale, încheind în mod logic perioada relativ scurtă de dominaţie a regimului nazist în Germania, pentru URSS şi Rusia, reconstrucţia a fost dictată de experienţa celor 70 de ani de dominaţie a regimului comunist, care a culminat cu dictatura teroristă a lui Stalin.