In the 1960s the Komsomol began to give particular attention to its international activity, which was not only limited to participation, but also involved the organization of many different events for foreign youth and students — international friendship camps, forums, trips of foreign delegations. The creation of the Committee of Youth Organizations of the USSR (KMO USSR) and the Sputnik International Youth Tourism Bureau (BMMT) contributed to the intensification of the tourist exchange between Soviet and foreign youth. Both organizations were subordinate to the Central Committee of the Komsomol and received funding from the Komsomol budget. In 1962, additional funds started being allocated for international activities, as evidenced by a new item of expenditure that appeared in the budget of the Komsomol. Most of this money was spent by the Central Committee, with excessive expenditure on the reception of foreign delegations and gifts, which was repeatedly noted by audit checks. Twelve to thirty committees with international youth camps (out of 86 regional Komsomol committees) received money under the framework of this funding item. During the period under study, the Komsomol actively helped with the payment of organizational fees to the funds of the World Festivals of Youth and Students, and then began to provide direct material assistance to the youth organizations in Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa, which regularly applied for it. It is important to note that the annual increase of spending on international activities occurred in the context of the termination of state funding for the Komsomol, which in 1959 became fully financially self-sufficient. Based on a wide range of archival documents introduced into scientific circulation for the first time, the article presents an analysis of the financial activities of the Central Committee of the All-Union Leninist Young Communist League, its sources of funding and directions for spending the funds allocated for international activities. The relevance of the study is determined by the lack of serious scholarly investigation of this problem and the need to study the financial support of international activities in order to give a comprehensive assessment of its impact and efficiency.

The history of the Komsomol cash and prize lotteries begins in 1957. This initiative was proposed by the Committee of Youth Organizations of the USSR under the Central Committee of the Komsomol, which was established in 1956. This marked a new direction in the Komsomol’s activities (previously, funds were obtained from membership fees, subbotniks, collection of scrap metal, waste paper, etc.). All the lotteries were timed to coincide with the World Festivals of Youth and Students and aimed at attracting additional funds to the Komsomol budget for organizing the festivals. This became especially relevant aft er 1959, when the Komsomol lost its state subsidy and was forced to independently form its budget. The youth festivals had important ideological and educational significance and were held on a grand scale. In addition, within the framework of the festivals, the Komsomol provided material assistance to delegates from Asia and Africa, and sometimes fully covered their participation in the event. The Komsomol managed all aspects of the lottery from designing the lottery tickets to distributing them. Analysis of a range of archival documents, including financial reports, budget plans, as well as decrees and materials from secretariats and bureaus, clearly shows that the funds raised from the lotteries were consistently much less than expected. To address the issue, regional lottery committees were established, and plans for ticket sales were introduced for Komsomol organizations. However, against the backdrop of increasing membership fees, the youth were in no hurry to buy lottery tickets. As a result, regional committees failed to meet the planned ticket sales targets. The Central Committee of the Komsomol found a solution by withdrawing the missing amount from other raised funds. Nevertheless, lottery tickets were more eagerly purchased by foreign participants of the youth festivals as a memorable souvenir, especially since they were sold in souvenir kiosks.