Through perestroika, trade with the United States and Britain became a lot more common. Under the communist rule, everyone was required to have a job, guaranteed to have one by the state. The USSR kept spending money on fighting other countries, trying to keep them communist, such as engaging in the Vietnam war. Mikhail Gorbachev's Perestroika policy made very large changes to the economy, allowing private ownership of companies, and it was meant to push people to work harder. More about economics in Political Systems