The Prague Spring: 20 Years Later

Abstract

T JL he 20th anniversary of the 1968 Soviet military interven tion that cut short the promising reforms of the Prague Spring will be commemorated in an environment unforeseen by political observers then or even just a few years ago. Moscow is no longer the most orthodox and belligerent guardian of the hard-line interpretation of communist doctrine. The Kremlin now portrays itself as one of the most daring innovators in the communist world. Instead of behaving as an aggressive power ready to pressure other countries into compliant behavior, the Soviet Union under Mikhail Gorbachev now advertises its