In the 1980s, the Soviet Union was embarking on political and economic reform. It began demanding payment from North Korea for past and current aid – amounts North Korea could not repay. By 1991, the Soviet Union dissolved, ending all aid and trade concessions, such as cheap oil.[1] Without Soviet aid, the flow of imports to the North Korean agricultural sector ended, and the government proved too inflexible to respond.[13] Energy imports fell by 75%.[14] The economy went into a downward spiral, with imports and exports falling in tandem.