Eng
Esp

Copyright © 2024 Euromaidanpress.com

The work of Euromaidan Press is supported by the International Renaissance Foundation

When referencing our materials, please include an active hyperlink to the Euromaidan Press material and a maximum 500-character extract of the story. To reprint anything longer, written permission must be acquired from [email protected].

Privacy and Cookie Policies.

Baltic past and present successes explain Moscow’s schizophrenic propaganda response

byPaul A. Goble
16/08/2017
2 minute read
The Baltic Way or Baltic Chain (also Chain of Freedom) was a peaceful political demonstration that occurred on 23 August 1989. Approximately two million people joined their hands to form a human chain spanning 675.5 km (419.7 mi) across the three Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, considered at the time to be constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The demonstration originated in "Black Ribbon Day" protests held in the western cities in the 1980s. It marked the 50th anniversary of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. The pact and its secret protocols divided Eastern Europe into spheres of influence and led to the occupation of the Baltic states in 1940. (Image and caption: Wikipedia)
The Baltic Way or Baltic Chain (also Chain of Freedom) was a peaceful political demonstration that occurred on 23 August 1989. Approximately two million people joined their hands to form a human chain spanning 675.5 km (419.7 mi) across the three Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, considered at the time to be constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The demonstration originated in “Black Ribbon Day” protests held in the western cities in the 1980s. It marked the 50th anniversary of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. The pact and its secret protocols divided Eastern Europe into spheres of influence and led to the occupation of the Baltic states in 1940. (Image and caption: Wikipedia)
Baltic past and present successes explain Moscow’s schizophrenic propaganda response
Edited by: A. N.

Russian propaganda about the Baltic countries insists that they are marginal, but the amount of that Moscow effort underscores just the reverse: their success in resisting Sovietization and overcoming a half century of occupation by rejoining the West shows what other former Soviet fiefdoms might be able to do, according to Viktor Denisenko.

Indeed, the Russian commentator says,

“the success of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania is important for the entire rest of the post-Soviet space” because it shows “Soviet occupation is not some final geopolitical curse which blocks the acquisition of the principles of liberal democracy and a Western path of development.”

Consequently, when Moscow is talking about the Baltic countries, Denisenko suggests, it is really concerned in the first instance not about Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania but about Georgia and Ukraine and ultimately about all the other non-Russian countries that emerged following the collapse of the Soviet Union a quarter of a century ago.

This explains both the volume and the shrill tone of Russian reaction to the NATO film about “the forest brothers,” the indigenous movement that fought against the Soviet occupation after the end of World War II. Moscow clearly fears that “as a result of NATO’s efforts, the narrative about ‘the forest brothers’ has ceased to be local and become global.”

That is all the more so because NATO forces are now in the Baltics and because recently released documents show the US and other Western governments sought to assist the forest brothers in the 1940s during their unequal battle with Soviet occupiers. On these documents, see “West backed Forest Brothers in Baltic countries, newly declassified CIA documents show.”

Moscow’s dramatic expanse of its information campaign in the Baltic direction including cyberattacks and the spread of false news stories, Denisenko says, shows that the Kremlin is having to adjust itself to a reality very different than the one it has always assumed was the case with regard to the Baltic states.

“Moscow is accustomed to thinking about the West as a false and infirm geopolitical space divided by and even drowning in individualism,” with each country going its own way, he continues. In fact, the united Western response after Putin’s Crimean Anschluss shows that this vision is not true and that NATO is a newly revived force to be reckoned with.

According to Denisenko, “Brussels has boldly shown that it considers the [Russian] threat to the security of the Baltic countries to be real.” But “more than that, NATO “has shown that “in the alliance there are no second-class members. All the territory of NATO is a common zone of security” which can and will be defended.

Edited by: A. N.
You could close this page. Or you could join our community and help us produce more materials like this.  We keep our reporting open and accessible to everyone because we believe in the power of free information. This is why our small, cost-effective team depends on the support of readers like you to bring deliver timely news, quality analysis, and on-the-ground reports about Russia's war against Ukraine and Ukraine's struggle to build a democratic society. A little bit goes a long way: for as little as the cost of one cup of coffee a month, you can help build bridges between Ukraine and the rest of the world, plus become a co-creator and vote for topics we should cover next. Become a patron or see other ways to support. Become a Patron!

To suggest a correction or clarification, write to us here

You can also highlight the text and press Ctrl + Enter

Please leave your suggestions or corrections here



    Euromaidan Press

    We are an independent media outlet that relies solely on advertising revenue to sustain itself. We do not endorse or promote any products or services for financial gain. Therefore, we kindly ask for your support by disabling your ad blocker. Your assistance helps us continue providing quality content. Thank you!