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The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the occupation of the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the Soviet Union under the provisions of the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany, by Nazi Germany from 1941-1944, and again by the Soviet Union from 1944-91.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
When World War II started in September 1939, the fate of the Baltic countries had been already decided in the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact and its Secret Additional Protocol of August 1939.[7]
World War II losses in the Baltic states were among the highest in Europe. Estimates of population loss stand at 25% for Estonia, 30% for Latvia, and 15% for Lithuania. War and occupation deaths have been estimated at 90,000 in Estonia, 180,000 in Latvia, and 250,000 in Lithuania. These include the Soviet deportations in 1941, the German deportations, and Holocaust victims.[8]
In the reassessment of Soviet history that began during perestroika, in 1989 the USSR condemned the 1939 secret protocol between Nazi Germany and itself that had led to the invasion and occupation of the three Baltic countries.[9]
The Baltic States' struggle for independence came to a conclusion in 1991, when the sovereignties of the countries were restored, contributing to the eventual break-up of the Soviet Union later that year after the three states had seceded. The last Russian troops withdrew from the Baltic States in August 1994.[10]
Pre-1939
The four countries on the Baltic Sea that were formely parts of the Russian Empire — Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — consolidated their borders and independence after the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian independence wars following the end of World War I by 1920 (see Treaty of Tartu, Latvian-Soviet Riga Peace Treaty and Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920).
In 1924 Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia sealed a pact of mutual defense against eventual aggressors.[11] Ten years later, the Stalinist USSR pledged to not attack these three Baltic States until 1944.[12]
The Soviet ultimatums in 1939
The Beginning of WWII
- On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland.
- On September 3, Great Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand declared war on Germany
- On September 10, Canada declared war on Germany
- On September 14, the Polish submarine ORP Orzeł reached Tallinn, Estonia
- On September 17, the Soviet Union attacked Poland.
- On September 18, the "Orzeł incident" occurred: a Polish submarine escaped from internment in Tallinn and eventually made her way to the United Kingdom. Estonia's neutrality was questioned by the Soviet Union and Germany.
Ultimatums to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania
On September 24, 1939, warships of the Soviet Navy appeared off Estonian ports and Soviet bombers began a threatening patrol over Tallinn and the nearby countryside.[13] The USSR then entered the airspace of all three Baltic states, flying massive intelligence gathering operations on September 25. Moscow requested that the Baltic countries allow the USSR to establish military bases and to station troops on their soil.[14]
The government of Estonia accepted the ultimatum, signing the corresponding agreement on September 28, 1939. Latvia followed on October 5, 1939 and Lithuania shortly thereafter, on October 10, 1939. The agreements permitted the Soviet Union to establish military bases on the Baltic states' territory for the duration of the European war[15] and station 25,000 Soviet soldiers in Estonia, 30,000 in Latvia and 20,000 in Lithuania from October, 1939.
In early 1939, the Leningrad Military District had already allocated 17 divisions, about 10% of the Soviet Army, to the Baltic states. Mobilizations followed shortly. The 8th Army was dispatched to Pskov on September 14, 1939, and the mobilized 7th Army placed under the Leningrad Military District. Invasion preparations were by now nearing completion. On September 26, the Leningrad Military District was ordered to "start concentrating troops on the Estonian-Latvian border and to finish that operation on September 29th." The order noted, "for the time of starting the attack a separate directive will be issued."[16] Altogether, by the beginning of October, 1939, the Soviets had amassed along the Estonia-Latvia border:
- 437,325 troops;
- 3,635 artillery pieces;
- 3,052 tanks;
- 421 armored vehicles;
- 21,919 cars.[17]
Finland invaded
Finland was offered the same opportunity to sign a pact; however, the Finns refused,[18] and on November 30, 1939 the Soviet Union attacked Finland, launching the Winter War. The attack was judged as illegal by the League of Nations, which expelled the Soviet Union on December 14.[19] The war was brought to an end on March 13, 1940, when Finland and the Soviet Union signed the Moscow Peace Treaty. While Finland had resisted being conquered, it was nevertheless coerced to cede nearly all of Finnish Karelia (with Finland's industrial center, including Vyborg/Viipuri, Finland's second largest city; in total, nearly 10% of the territory), even though large parts were still held by Finland's army. Military troops and remaining civilians were hastily evacuated to areas inside the new border. 422,000 Karelians, 12% of Finland's population, lost their homes. Finland also had to cede a part of the Salla area, the Finnish part of the Kalastajansaarento (Rybachi) peninsula in the Barents Sea, and in the Gulf of Finland the islands of Suursaari, Tytärsaari, Lavansaari and Seiskari. Finally, the Hanko Peninsula was leased to the Soviet Union as a naval base for 30 years. In June 1941, hostilities between Finland and USSR resumed in the Continuation War.
Soviet invasion and occupation, 1940-1941
Soviet invasion
On June 12, 1940 the order for a total military blockade of Estonia to the Soviet Baltic Fleet was given: according to the director of the Russian State Archive of the Naval Department Pavel Petrov (C.Phil.) referring to the records in the archive.[20][21]
On June 14, 1940 the Soviet military blockade of Estonia went into effect while world attention was focused on the fall of Paris to Nazi Germany a day earlier. Two Soviet bombers downed the Finnish passenger airplane "Kaleva" flying from Tallinn to Helsinki carrying three diplomatic pouches from the U.S. legations in Tallinn, Riga and Helsinki. The US Foreign Service employee Henry W. Antheil, Jr. was killed in the crash.[22]
On June 15, the USSR invaded Lithuania[23] and Soviet troops attacked the Latvian border guards at Maslenki.[24]
on June 16 1940, the USSR invaded Estonia and Latvia.[23]
Molotov accused the Baltic states of conspiracy against the Soviet Union and delivered an ultimatum to all Baltic countries for the establishment of Soviet-approved governments. Threatening invasion and accusing the three states of violating the original pacts as well as forming a conspiracy against the Soviet Union, Moscow presented ultimatums, demanding new concessions, which included the replacement of governments and allowing an unlimited number of troops to enter the three countries.[25][26][27][28] Hundreds of thousands Soviet troops entered Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania across the borders.[29] These additional Soviet military forces far outnumbered the armies of each country.[30]
The Baltic governments had decided that, in conditions of international isolation and given the overwhelming Soviet force both on the borders and inside the countries, it was in their interests not to actively resist and to avoid bloodshed in an unwinnable war.[31] The occupation of the Baltic states was complete with a communist coup d'état in each country, supported by the Soviet troops.[32]
Most of the Defence Forces of the Baltic Countries surrendered on these orders, and were disarmed by the Red Army. However, the Estonian Single Signal Battalion stationed in Tallinn at Raua Street showed some resistance. The Red Army brought in additional reinforcements supported by six armoured fighting vehicles, and the battle lasted several hours. There was one dead and several wounded on the Estonian side, and about 10 killed and more wounded on the Soviet side. Finally the military resistance was ended with negotiations and the Single Signal Battalion surrendered and was disarmed.[33]
Soviet terror
- See also: Communist terrorism
The repressions followed with the mass deportations carried out by the Soviets. Order № 001223, "On the Procedure for carrying out the Deportation of Anti-Soviet Elements from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia", contained detailed instructions for procedures and protocols to observe in the deportation of Baltic nationals.
Led by Stalin’s close associates,[34] the local communist supporters and those brought in from Russia, proclaimed new "people's governments" in the three occupied countries.
In the following month, rigged parliamentary elections were conducted by local communists loyal to the Soviet Union and all non-communist candidates were disqualified.[35] The election results were completely fabricated: the Soviet press service released them early, with the result that they had already appeared in print in a London newspaper a full 24 hours before the polls closed.[36][37] The result was that all three Baltic states had communist majorities in their parliaments, and in August, despite claims prior to the elections that no such action would be taken,[35] they petitioned the Soviet government to join the Soviet Union. The petitions were granted and the three republics were formally annexed by the Soviet Union.
Those who failed to have their passports stamped for so voting were allowed to be shot in the back of the head.[38] Public tribunals were also set up to punish "traitors to the people": those who had fallen short of the "political duty" of voting their countries into the USSR.
Immediately after the elections, NKVD units under the leadership of Ivan Serov arrested more than 15,000 "hostile elements" and members of their families[30]. In the first year of Soviet occupation, from June 1940 to June 1941, the number confirmed executed, conscripted, or deported is estimated at a minimum of 124,467: 59,732 in Estonia, 34,250 in Latvia, and 30,485 in Lithuania.[39] This included 8 former heads of state and 38 ministers from Estonia, 3 former heads of state and 15 ministers from Latvia, and the then president, 5 prime ministers and 24 other ministers from Lithuania.[40]
The last large-scale operation was planned for the night of 27-28 June 1941. It was postponed until after the war when the Germans invaded the USSR on 22 June 1941 - Operation Barbarossa[30]. According to historian Robert Conquest, the selective deportations from the Baltic States represented the policy of "decapitation" of the nation by removing its political and social elite, "as was later evidently to be the motive for the Katyn massacre."[41]
Between July and August 1940, Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian envoys to the United States and the United Kingdom made official protests against Soviet occupation and annexation of their countries. The United States,[42] in accordance with the principles of the Stimson Doctrine (Sumner Welles' Declaration of July 23, 1940[43][37]), as well as most other Western countries[44][45] never formally recognized the annexation, but did not directly interfere with Soviet control. The Baltic States continued their de jure existence in accordance with international law.[46][47] Diplomatic and consular representations of the Baltic States continued to function between 1940 - 1991 in some Western countries (USA, Australia, Switzerland).[48] Members of Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian diplomatic services in Western countries continued to formulate and express the official opinion of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and protected the interests of these countries and their citizens abroad between 1940–1991, i.e., until the restoration of independence of the Baltic States.
The events in the Baltic Republics were not isolated. In Finland and the Scandinavian peninsula the great powers demanded concessions infringing their neutrality or sovereignty: Germany had pressured Sweden to grant transit rights for material and personnel transportation between Norway and ports of southern Sweden during the fighting in Norway, and achieved this after Norway's defeat. Immediately thereafter, the Soviet Union began to pressure Finland for transfer rights over land between the Hanko naval base and the Soviet border, established as a Finnish concession in the Moscow Peace Treaty, as well as for control of the Petsamo nickel mine.
In August, Finland granted transfer rights to German troops traveling between Northern Norway and ports of the Gulf of Bothnia in a diplomatic effort to improve relations with Nazi Germany that had been frosty since the mid-1930s due to ideological differences, clearly demonstrated when the Third Reich sided with the Soviet Union during the Winter War. Finland now managed to increase political contacts with Germany, which were seen as the only hope against Soviet occupation. In September, Finland and the Soviet Union came to an agreement on Hanko transitations. When the Soviet foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov, in November 1940, requested German acceptance and passive support for invasion of Finland, Hitler declined as he saw Finland as a potential ally in the upcoming invasion of the Soviet Union. The negotiations for the Petsamo mines stalled for several months, until indirect German support allowed the Finns to let those negotiations lapse.
Occupation by Nazi Germany, 1941-1944
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- See also: Occupation of Estonia by Nazi Germany
- See also: Occupation of Latvia by Nazi Germany
- See also: Lithuanian 1941 independence
Germany occupied the territories of Baltic states after invading the Soviet Union in 1941 during Operation Barbarossa. At the beginning the Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians considered the Germans to be their liberators from Soviet rule. In Lithuania a revolt broke out on the first day of the war, and an independent provisional government was established. As the German armies approached Riga and Tallinn, attempts to reestablish national governments were made. It was hoped that the Germans would reestablish Baltic independence. Such political hopes soon evaporated and Baltic cooperation became less forthright or ceased altogether.[49] A growing proportion of local population turned against the Nazi regime as Germany turned the Baltic states (except for the Memel (Klaipeda) region reclaimed by Reich in 1939) and most of Belarus into the Reichskommissariat Ostland, a colony in which the four constituent nationalities were governed by a German administration. Hinrich Lohse, a German Nazi politician, was Reichskommissar until the Soviet re-occupation.
German policy in the area was harsh, not only involving the local population in the Holocaust but also subjugating local populations. One of the Nazi plans for the colonisation of conquered territories in the East, referred to as Generalplan Ost, called for the wholesale deportation of some two thirds of the native population from territories of the Baltic states in the event of a German victory. The remaining third were either to be exterminated in situ, used as slave labour or Germanised if deemed sufficiently Aryan, while hundreds of thousands of German settlers were to be moved into the conquered territories.
Towards the end of the war, once it became clear that Germany would be defeated, many Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians joined the Germans once again. It was hoped that by engaging in such a war the Baltic countries would be able to attract Western support for the cause of independence from the USSR.[50] In Latvia an underground nationalist Central Council of Latvia was formed on August 13, 1943. An analogous body, the Supreme Committee for the Liberation of Lithuania, emerged on November 25, 1943. On March 23, 1944, the underground National Committee of the Estonian Republic was founded. In Estonia, as the country was incorporated into the German province of Ostland, many Estonians not willing to side with the Nazis joined the Finnish army to fight against the Soviet Union. The Finnish Infantry Regiment 200 was formed out of Estonian volunteers in Finland, known colloquially as the "Finland Boys" (Estonian: soomepoisid). By January 1944, the Russian front advanced almost all the way to the former Estonian border. Narva was evacuated. Jüri Uluots, the last legitimate prime minister of the Republic of Estonia (according to the constitution of Estonia) prior to its fall to the Soviet Union in 1940 and now the head of the National Committee of the Estonian Republic, delivered a radio address that implored all able-bodied men born from 1904 through 1923 to report for military service (prior to this, Uluots had opposed Estonian mobilization). The call drew support from all across the country: 38,000 Volunteers jammed registration centers.[51] Several thousand Estonians who had joined the Finnish army came back across the Gulf of Finland to join the newly formed Territorial Defense Force, assigned to defend Estonia against the Soviet advance. In 1943 and 1944 two divisions of Waffen SS were formed from Latvians, predominantly conscripts, to fight against the Red Army.
The Holocaust
Estonia
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Out the approximately 4,300 Jews prior to the war, between 1,500 and 2,000 were trapped in Estonia by the Nazi advance. Many Jewish people (estimated at around 500 individuals) were deported to Siberia along with other Estonians by the Soviets.[52] An estimated 10,000 Jews were killed in Estonia after having been deported to camps there from elsewhere in Eastern Europe.[53]
There have been trials of 7 ethnic Estonians (Ralf Gerrets, Ain-Ervin Mere, Jaan Viik, Juhan Jüriste, Karl Linnas, Aleksander Laak and Ervin Viks) for crimes against humanity. Since the re-establishment of Estonian independence, an Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity has been established.[54]
Latvia
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The Jewish community had already suffered heavily in the Soviet mass deportations, losing much of its civic and political leadership. Proportionately, the mass deportations extracted a heavier toll on Jews than any other ethnicity.[55] Deprived of their leadership, Jews were ill-prepared to respond to the Nazi threat. After the establishment of German authority, the process of eliminating the Jewish and Gypsy population began, with many killings taking place in Rumbula. The killings were committed by the Einsatzgruppe A, the Wehrmacht and Marines (in Liepaja), as well as by Latvian collaborators, including the 500-1,500 members of the infamous Arajs Commando (which alone killed around 26,000 Jews) and the 2,000 or more Latvian members of the SD.[56][57] By the end of 1941 almost the entire Jewish population had been killed or interned in death camps. In addition, some 25,000 Jews were brought from Germany, Austria and the present-day Czech Republic, of whom around 20,000 were killed. The Holocaust claimed approximately 85,000 lives in Latvia.[56]
Lithuania
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- See also: Non-German cooperation with Nazis during World War II#Lithuania
Before the Holocaust, Lithuania was home to 160,000 Jews, and was one of the greatest centers of Jewish theology, philosophy, and learning which preceded even the times of the Gaon of Vilna. By 1941, fleeing refugees (mostly from Poland), had increased the number of Jews in the country to 250,000.
With the beginning of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, the Lithuanian nationalist Temporary Government declared that a re-established independent Lithuania would ally itself with Nazi Germany to "create a new order in Europe".[citation needed]
In late June, detachments of the German Einsatzgruppe A under Franz Walter Stahlecker began to operate on Lithuanian territory. In some places Stahlecker's men sought to encourage pogroms (so-called "Selbstreinigungsaktionen") against the Jewish population; Stahlecker's Consolidated Report of 15 October 1941 expressed frustration over how unexpected difficulties were initially experienced in this.[58] Nevertheless, together with voluntary Lithuanian auxiliaries, the Germans were able to start large scale mass shootings of Jews. According to German documents, between 25 and 26 June 1941, "about 1,500 Jews were eliminated by the Lithuanian partisans. Many Jewish synagogues were set on fire; on the following nights another 2,300 were killed."[59] By November of 1941, many Jews had been killed in places like Paneriai (Ponary massacre). The surviving 40,000 Jews were concentrated in the Vilnius, Kaunas, Šiauliai, and Švenčionys ghettos, and in concentration camps, where many died of starvation or disease. In 1943, the ghettos were either destroyed by the Germans or turned into concentration camps, and 5,000 Jews were deported to the extermination camps.
During the first wave of killings in 1941–42, Roma, alleged Communist activists, and the mentally disabled were also targeted.[60] Additionally, large numbers of Soviet POWs perished in German captivity due to wilful neglect by the German authorities.[61]
At the end of the war, only 10–15% of Lithuania's Jews survived, most of them by escaping to the interior of the USSR during the German invasion in 1941. The genocide rate of Jews in Lithuania, 95–97%, was the highest in Europe. This was primarily due, with few notable exceptions, to widespread Lithuanian help and cooperation with the German occupiers at all levels of society. Jews were widely considered to have supported the previous Soviet regime. Anti-Jewish attitudes therefore increased as the anti-Soviet sentiment within Lithuanian nationalism complemented already existing, traditional antisemitism.[62][63][64]
Another factor influencing the high degree of Jewish genocide in Lithuania in contrast to other places in Europe (Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands) was the relative lack assimilation of Jews in eastern Europe.[citation needed]
Soviet re-occupation, 1944-1991
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Main article: Estonian SSR
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Main article: Latvian SSR
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Main article: Lithuanian SSR
The Soviet Union reoccupied the Baltic states as part of the Baltic Strategic Offensive Operation, a twofold military-political operation to rout German forces and the "liberation of the Soviet Baltic peoples"[66] beginning in summer-autumn 1944, lasting until the capitulation of German and Latvian forces in Courland pocket in May 1945, and they were gradually absorbed into Soviet Union. On 12 January 1949 the Soviet Council of Ministers issued a decree "on the expulsion and deportation" from Baltic states of "all kulaks and their families, the families of bandits and nationalists", and others.[30] More than 200,000 people are estimated to have been deported from the Baltic in 1940-1953. In addition, at least 75,000 were sent to Gulag. 10 percent of the entire adult Baltic population was deported or sent to labor camps.[30]
After World War II, as part of the goal to more fully integrate Baltic countries into the Soviet Union, mass deportations were concluded in the Baltic countries and the policy of encouraging Soviet immigration to the Baltic states continued.[67]
In July 1989, following the dramatic events in East Germany, the Supreme Soviets of the Baltic countries adopted a "Declaration of Sovereignties" and amended the Constitutions to assert the supremacy of their own laws over those of the USSR. Candidates from the pro-independence party Popular Fronts gained majority in the Supreme Councils in 1990 democratic elections. The Councils declared their intention to restore full independence. Soviet political and military forces tried unsuccessfully to overthrow the governments. In 1991, Baltic countries claimed de facto independence. International recognition, including that of the USSR, followed. The United States, which had never recognized forcible annexation of the Baltic countries by the USSR, resumed full diplomatic relations with the republics.[67]
Historical considerations
In Northern Europe, the fate of small countries during World War II varied considerably. Denmark and Norway were occupied by Germany; Sweden had to make some concessions but with skillful foreign policy and a credible military it was able to stay out of the war. Both Denmark and Norway reverted to democracy after the Nazi capitulation.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were again occupied and annexed by the Soviet Union and only regained their independence nearly fifty years later in the aftermath of the Soviet coup of 1991. Finland, which geographically was in a less advantageous position than Sweden, had to endure two wars: the (Winter War and the Continuation War) with territorial losses, and had to bend its foreign policy in favor of the Soviet Union after the war (Finlandization), but it remained independent, capitalist and maintained a democratic political system after World War II.
Recognition and non-recognition of annexation and occupation
A number of western governments granted de jure recognition of the Soviet annexation and governance of the Baltic states, among them:
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