On August 23, 2009, citizens from three Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) gathered in Brussels, Belgium, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Baltic Way ('Baltijos Kelias,' in Lithuanian). Twenty years earlier (and a few months before the collapse of the Berlin Wall), millions of Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians formed a human chain across their countries to remind the world of the lasting adverse effects of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939.
Germany and the Soviet Union Begin Secret Negotiations
During the 1930s, the growing power of the German National Socialist (Nazi) Party increased tensions throughout Europe, and especially with the Soviet Union. In early 1939, political talks began in Europe with the goal of limiting German aggression across the continent. The talks broke down when the Soviet Union insisted that any alliance between the Baltic states and Germany would be considered an act of indirect hostility toward the Soviet Union.
As chancellor and political leader of Germany, Adolf Hitler realized that a political accommodation with the leader of the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin, would be necessary in order to continue German expansion in Central and Eastern Europe. In the summer of 1939, Hitler authorized German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop to begin secret negotiations with Soviet foreign minister Vyacheslav Molotov.
The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939
Despite political disagreements, the one bond that connected Germany with the Soviet Union was a mutual distrust of capitalism and democratic governments. On August 21, 1939, Stalin broke off talks with Britain and France in the belief that he could negotiate better terms with Germany.
On August 23, 1939, von Ribbentrop visited Stalin and Molotov in Moscow. Stalin learned that Hitler was prepared to make several important concessions in order to reach an agreement, including dividing Central and Eastern Europe into German and Soviet spheres of influence. The resulting Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was agreed to that day and officially signed in the early morning hours of August 24, 1939.
To the outside world, the pact simply announced a 10-year nonaggression treaty between Germany and the Soviet Union. As Sužiedelis (1989) pointed out, however, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact also contained a number of hidden provisions. For example, Article I of the Secret Protocol effectively ceded control of the three Baltic states to the Soviet Union. The political representatives of Estonia, Latvia, or Lithuania were unaware of this provision at the time. Today, it is suspected that all three Baltic states discovered the true intentions of the pact by the end of September 1939.
The End of War Does Not Bring Independence to the Baltic States
The defeat of Germany and the end of World War II did not abolish the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Indeed, as Soviet armies swept westward to liberate Poland and the Baltic states, the armies remained behind in the liberated territories to ensure an ongoing Soviet sphere of influence for decades to come.
On August 23, 1989 (the 50th anniversary of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact), citizens of the Baltic states staged a unique demonstration in protest of the pact's lasting effects. According to the Estonian National Commission for UNESCO (2008), two million people from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania joined hands and formed a 600-km long human chain that stretched from one national capital to another (Tallinn to Riga to Vilnius).
The demonstration was peaceful. At a time when the Berlin Wall was still standing, the Baltic states used the human chain not only to protest for independence, but also to emphasize how Europe could not be free without them. As Paet et al (2009) observed, “The Berlin Wall divided people, but the Baltic Way united them.”
The Baltic Way Serves as a Symbol of Freedom
Much has changed in the world today. Countries that once fell under the Soviet sphere of influence now are independent. Some became member states of the European Union (EU), while others joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
The Soviet Union may be no more, but the use of military force to suppress dissent is still present, as the 2008 Georgia-Russia crisis showed. Nevertheless, as EU President José Manuel Barroso noted, “The 'Baltic Way' will remain in our memories as a proof of the strength of the human spirit in its fight for freedom and democracy.”
References
Estonian National Commission for UNESCO. 2008. The Baltic Way — Human Chain Linking Three States in Their Drive for Freedom.
Paet U, Riekstinš M, Ušackas V. 2009. The Baltic Way. The human chain 20 years ago across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania helped end communism. The Wall Street Journal (August 23).
Sužiedelis S. 1989. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact: the documents. Lituanus. 35(1):8-46.
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