ID | 133755 |
Title Proper | Acknowledgement of the secret protocol of the German-Soviet non-aggression pact and the declaration of state sovereignty by the union republics of the USSR |
Language | ENG |
Author | Sato, Keiji |
Publication | 2014. |
Summary / Abstract (Note) | In June 1989, the First Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union established the Commission for Historical and Legal Estimation of the Soviet-German Non-aggression Pact of 1939. In the commission, representatives from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania condemned the Soviet annexation of the Baltic States, prompting heated arguments regarding the invalidity of the related secret protocol of the pact with other members who continued to hold the traditional Soviet ideological view of the pact as something positive. The debate over the secret protocol had the further potential to extend to disputes over 'recovery of lost territory' amongst the Baltic States, Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus and Russia. This article analyses the arguments used by commission members, considering the interplay of national interests, how they balanced arguments between restoration of 'state sovereignty' and maintenance of borders, and how they finally compromised and concluded the commission's report. |
`In' analytical Note | Europe-Asia Studies Vol.66, NO.7; Sep.2014: p.1146-1164 |
Journal Source | Europe-Asia Studies Vol.66, NO.7; Sep.2014: p.1146-1164 |
Key Words | Secret Protocol ; Germany ; German-Soviet Non-Aggression ; State Sovereignty ; Sovereignty ; Politics ; Soviet Union ; Russia ; Soviet - German Accord ; Historical Context ; Estonia ; Latvia ; Lithuania ; Historical Estimation ; Legal Estimation ; Soviet Annexation ; Baltic States ; National Interest |