A successful waste of money

„Setting up a big-time spy swap to resolve this scandal will make Russia’s leaders feel like they are back in the good old days of superpower parity. That might even make the entire episode worth the money for them. Explanations for why 10 Russians were living in the U.S. under deep cover and accomplishing nothing of real value have emphasized old ways of thinking, Cold War habits, and efforts to revive Russia’s defense capability. But these accounts have missed the crucial point: The waste of money and talent is the norm for much of what Russia does on the global stage, and it is nothing new. Russia consistently squanders large sums chasing prestige, with much of the money ending up in the pockets of corrupt officials.

Back in the U.S.S.R., the space program was a prime example. Parallel to the scientific and military space effort, dominated by Soviet cosmonauts, the U.S.S.R. had a program to launch representatives of fraternal socialist countries into orbit. The program would have been far less expensive if the foreign comrades had been allowed to travel on regularly scheduled scientific flights. Instead, the entire fellow-travelers effort was operated separately, with its own budget. The flights were purely propaganda, squandering both money and the opportunity to engage in serious collaborative efforts. The people who ran the program traveled abroad to recruit participants, and their budget was substantial.”