Reading about autonomous oblasts, the name seemed odd for a nation that was known for central planning. What was the relationship like between these oblasts and the republics, and how much autonomy did they really have?
Autonomous oblasts, like the Republic system, arose as an attempt to placate a multi-ethnic empire. Due do the people in the AO's being a different ethnicity/nationality from the main SSR, they were allowed certain freedoms such as the right to speak their own language and develop their "national culture." However, the regions did not gain the rights laid out to the SSR's, including the right of a separate constitution, Red Army branch, limited foreign affairs, and as per the 1977 constitution, the right to leave the USSR.