International Monetary Fund (IMF), an inter-governmetal currency-credit organisation. Under its Charter, the IMF regulates monetary relations between member states and grants them short-term credits when they experience monetary difficulties because of payments deficits. Founded by a decision of the Monetary and Financial Conference at Bretton Woods (1944) the Fund, consisting of 146 member states (1982), began its operations in 1947. The Fund Board has its headquarters in Washington (USA). The USSR does not take part in the Fund. Being the tool of supranational state-monopoly regulation of the international monetary sphere, the IMF has a definite effect on the economic policy of member countries, especially those which are IMF debtors. The IMF in fact is controlled by the United States, which retains leading status in it and uses the IMF to uphold the position of the dollar as the key currency of the capitalist world. 176 Providing international liquidity, during a period of ongoing crisis of the monetary and financial system of imperialism (see Monetary Crisis), i.e., the ability of the countries to make unhindered payments on international operations, freely converting the favourable balance into the currencies used as means of international settlements, is the most difficult problem facing the IMF members. To deal with this problem the IMF has introduced the system of granting mutual credits in special drawing rights (SDR). The SDR is the international reserve-settlement means operating under the IMF in the form of entries on special accounts of member countries. Initially the SDR was equated to the dollar but as of July 1, 1974, its value content, as a result of the dollar’s devaluation (1971), was determined indirectly on the basis of the currencies of leading Western countries, in which the dollar accounted for approximately one third of the value. The SDR was introduced because of the inter-monopoly struggle by imperialist powers for spheres of influence. The role of the SDR is to cover payments deficits of IMF member countries, replenishing currency reserves and settling accounts with the Fund. The attempts to artificially revitalise the capitalist monetary system with the help of the SDR did not yield positive results since the SDR itself has no value and real guarantee in the form of national currencies and material benefits. The aggravation of the monetary and financial crisis and constant monetary-economic disequilibriums have led to new conflicts and clashes between imperialist states. The system of fixed exchange rates elaborated at Bretton Woods in fact ceased to exist in 1973 and was replaced by the so-called floating exchange rates (i.e., depending on the supply and demand on the exchange). But measures of international regulation by using floating exchange rates yielded no positive results. Everything that the IMF does leads to the expansion of the market of capitals, the irrational growth of the number of payment means in circulation, and the aggravation of relations between creditors and debtors. The balances of payments of the IMF member countries are chronically imbalanced, and the imperialist contradictions are insurmountable.