The Baltic States and the End of the Cold War (Tartu Historical Studies)

This book examines the role of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the downfall of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War. It includes groundbreaking, archives-based research on important facets of the Soviet collapse like, for example, politics of history, Soviet Atheism, economic reforms, the military and the use of force. The authors place the Baltic struggle for independence in the context of international politics, analyzing interlinkages with the Warsaw Pact countries, the activities of the Baltic diaspora, small-state diplomacy and strategic and security-related questions from the end of the Cold War and into the 1990s. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania at the end of the USSR and the Cold War / Kaarel Piirimäe, with Olaf Mertelsmann -- Reception and historiography of the MRP in (Soviet) Russia - historians and their responsibility / Jan Lipinsky -- An economic innovation as an icebreaker : the contractual work experiment in Soviet Estonia in 1985 / Juhan Saharov -- Atheism as an intellectual project in Soviet Lithuania : assumptions, objections, and transformations / Justinas Dementavičius -- Informal social networks as the precondition for mass mobilization : the case of Kaunas in the late Soviet period / Rytis Bulota -- Glasnost policy reaching Estonia : fear and hope in the protest letters of Estonian residents during the campaign against the phosphorite mines in 1987 / Olev Liivik -- The wind of change in cultural diplomacy : Estonian society for friendship and cultural relations with foreign countries in the late 1980s and early 1990s / Triin Tark -- Spillover of revolution : the Baltic Republics and Czechoslovakia 1988-1989 / Luboš Švec -- Latvian diaspora's involvement in the Latvian state independence renewal processes 1989-1991 / Kristīne Beķere -- The Baltic diaspora and restoration of Baltic independence - the Latvian contribution / Eduards Bruno Deksnis -- The Baltic independence struggle and Danish diplomacy 1988-1991 / Lars Gronbjerg -- Why the Soviet coercive use of force in the Baltic Republics failed in 1990-1991 and led to the end of the Soviet Union? / Joseph Enge -- Gorbachev's last trench line : Estonian diplomacy toward the east and the Soviet crack-down in the Baltic States in January 1991 / Kaarel Piirimäe -- Competing narratives at the start of Estonia's security-building process in 1991-1994 / Holger Mölder Cover Table of Contents Preface (Kaarel Piirimäe) Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania at the End of the USSR and the Cold War (Kaarel Piirimäe) Reception and Historiography of the MRP in (Soviet) Russia – Historians and Their Responsibility (Jan Lipinsky) An Economic Innovation as an Icebreaker: The Contractual Work Experiment in Soviet Estonia in 1985 (Juhan Saharov) Atheism as an Intellectual Project in Soviet Lithuania: Assumptions, Objections, and Transformations (Justinas Dementavičius) Informal Social Networks as the Precondition for Mass Mobilization: The Case of Kaunas in the Late Soviet Period (Rytis Bulota) Glasnost Policy Reaching Estonia: Fear and Hope in the Protest Letters of Estonian Residents during the Campaign against the Phosphorite Mines in 1987 (Olev Liivik) The Wind of Change in Cultural Diplomacy: Estonian Society for Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries in the Late 1980s and Early 1990s (Triin Tark) Spillover of Revolution: The Baltic Republics and Czechoslovakia 1988–1989 (Luboš Švec) Latvian Diaspora’s Involvement in the Latvian State Independence Renewal Processes 1989–1991 (Kristīne Beķere) The Baltic Diaspora and Restoration of Baltic Independence – the Latvian Contribution (Eduards Bruno Deksnis) The Baltic Independence Struggle and Danish Diplomacy 1988–1991 (Lars Gronbjerg) Why the Soviet Coercive Use of Force in the Baltic Republics Failed in 1990–1991 and Led to the End of the Soviet Union (Joseph Enge) Gorbachev’s “Last Trench Line”: Estonian Diplomacy toward the East and the Soviet Crackdown in the Baltic States in January 1991 (Kaarel Piirimäe) Competing Narratives at the Start of Estonia’s Security-Building Process in 1991–1994 (Holger Mölder) List of Contributors Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania at the end of the Cold War - Politics of history in Russia - Gorbachev, Perestroika and Glasnost - Atheism, and informal social networks - Soviet cultural diplomacy - Danish diplomacy and the Baltic question - Normalization regime in Czechoslovakia - Baltic diasporas - Use of force and the coup d'état in the USSR in 1991 - Security narratives in the 1990s "This book examines the role of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the downfall of the Soviet Union at the peaceful end of the Cold War. It includes groundbreaking, archives-based research on important facets of the Soviet collapse"-- Provided by publisher