The Baltic States and the End of the Soviet Empire

Abstract

How was it possible for the three tiny Baltic republics to gain their freedom from the Soviet Union, without a single shot being fired or a single stone being thrown at the oppressor? This book is about the implosion of the Soviet Empire. It tells the parallel stories of how the three Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania struggled successfully to gain their freedom, and how the policies pursued by Mikhail Gorbachev served to mobilize and politicize Baltic demands. The authors emphasize unintended consequences that resulted from repeated interventions by Moscow. They develop a loose game theoretic framework for the examination of the struggle. The presentation develops analytical tools and then outlines, as background, features of Gorbachev's reform programme and the history of the states. Three core chapters contain the analysis. The authors' conclusion points to the absence of politics in the Soviet system as a main cause of its self-destruction.