The Soviet ruling elite, the nomenklatura, used both cooption and political repression to encourage loyalty to the communist regime. Loyalty was critical both in defusing internal opposition to the rule of the nomenklatura and in either deterring or defeating foreign enemies of the Soviet Union....

This paper discusses Cyprus’ Second Review Under the Extended Arrangement Under the Extended Fund Facility and Request for Modification of Performance Criteria. The program is on track. Fiscal performance continued to exceed targets comfortably, and the 2014 budget is more ambitious than...

This paper focuses on Cyprus’ Fourth Review Under the Extended Arrangement Under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and Request for Modification of Performance Criteria. The program remains on track. Fiscal targets for the first quarter were met with considerable margins, domestic payment...

KEY ISSUES Background: The large imbalances that accumulated prior to the global financial crisis culminated in a collapse of the banking sector in early 2013. In response, the authorities took unprecedented measures and adopted an economic adjustment program, supported by official financing,...

This paper discusses Cyprus’ First Review Under the Extended Arrangement Under the Extended Fund Facility and Request for Modification of Performance Criteria. The program is on track, and ownership by the authorities has improved. Fiscal targets were met with a comfortable margin. All...

Explanations of the large current account deficits for the euro area periphery and the Baltics in the run up to the crisis revolve around two main factors: deteriorating export performance or demand driven booms. We add that there were important movements in transfers and net income balances....

Greece’s deep recession has continued unabated, with the economy struggling to gain traction against domestic political instability and weak external conditions. Stronger internal devaluation is now under way, reflecting the interaction of labor market liberalization with the already weak...