Historical claims of the Baltic countries to Russia. Baltic states

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, it was interesting to see how sovereign states charted their own course to prosperity. The Baltic countries were especially intriguing, as they left with a loud slam of the door.

Over the past 30 years, the Russian Federation has been constantly bombarded with numerous claims and threats. The Baltic people believe that they have the right to this, although the desire to secede was suppressed by the USSR army. As a result of the suppression of separatism in Lithuania, 15 civilians died.

Traditionally, the Baltic states are classified as countries. This is due to the fact that this alliance was formed from liberated states after World War II.

Some geopoliticians do not agree with this and consider the Baltic states to be an independent region, which includes:

• , capital Tallinn.
• (Riga).
• (Vilnius).

All three states are washed by the Baltic Sea. Estonia has the smallest area, the number of inhabitants is about 1.3 million people. Next comes Latvia, where 2 million citizens live. Lithuania closes the top three with a population of 2.9 million.

Based on their small population, the Baltic states have carved out a niche among small countries. The composition of the region is multinational. In addition to indigenous peoples, Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Poles and Finns live here.

The majority of Russian speakers are concentrated in Latvia and Estonia, about 28–30% of the population. The most “conservative” is Lithuania, where 82% of native Lithuanians live.

For reference. Although the Baltic countries are experiencing a high outflow of the working-age population, they are in no hurry to populate free territories with forced migrants from and. The leaders of the Baltic republics are trying to look for various reasons to evade their obligations to the EU on the resettlement of refugees.

Political course

Even being part of the USSR, the Baltic states were significantly different from other Soviet regions in better side. It was perfectly clean, beautiful architectural heritage and an interesting population similar to the European one.

The central street of Riga is Brivibas street, 1981.

The Baltic region has always had a desire to become part of Europe. An example was the rapidly developing state that defended its independence from the Soviets in 1917.

The chance to separate from the USSR appeared in the second half of the eighties, when democracy and glasnost came along with perestroika. This opportunity was not missed, and the republics began to openly talk about separatism. Estonia became a pioneer in the independence movement and mass protests broke out here in 1987.

Under pressure from the electorate, the Supreme Council of the ESSR issued the Declaration of Sovereignty. At the same time, Latvia and Lithuania followed the example of their neighbor, and in 1990 all three republics received autonomy.

In the spring of 1991, referendums in the Baltic countries put an end to relations with the USSR. In the autumn of the same year, the Baltic countries joined the UN.

The Baltic republics willingly adopted the course of the West and Europe in economic and political development. Soviet heritage was condemned. Relations with the Russian Federation have completely cooled.

Russians living in the Baltic countries had limited rights. After 13 years of independence, the Baltic powers also joined the NATO military bloc.

Economic course

After gaining sovereignty, the Baltic economy underwent significant changes. The developed industrial sector has been replaced by service sectors. The importance of agriculture and food production has increased.

Modern industries include:

• Precision engineering (electrical engineering and household equipment).
• Machine tool industry.
• Ship repair.
• Chemical industry.
• Perfume industry.
• Wood processing (furniture and paper production).
• Light and footwear industry.
• Food production.

Soviet legacy in production Vehicle: cars and electric trains - completely lost.

It is obvious that the Baltic industry is not strong point in the post Soviet time. The main income for these countries comes from the transit industry.

After gaining independence, all the production and transit capacities of the USSR went to the republics for free. The Russian side made no claims, used the services and paid about $1 billion a year for cargo turnover. Every year, the amount for transit grew, as the Russian economy increased its pace and cargo turnover increased.

For reference. The Russian company Kuzbassrazrezugol shipped more than 4.5 million tons of coal per year to its customers through the Baltic ports.

Particular attention should be paid to the Baltic monopoly on transit Russian oil. At one time, the forces of the USSR built the Ventspils oil terminal, the largest at that time, on the Baltic coast. A pipeline was built to it, the only one in the region. Latvia got this grandiose system for nothing.

Thanks to the built industrial infrastructure, the Russian Federation pumped over 30 million tons of oil through Latvia annually. For each barrel, Russia gave 0.7 dollars in logistics services. The republic's income grew steadily as oil exports increased.

The transiter’s sense of self-preservation has become dulled, which will play one of the key roles in the stagnation of the economy after the 2008 crisis.

The operation of the Baltic ports was ensured, among other things, by the transshipment of sea containers (TEU). After the modernization of the port terminals of St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad and Ust-Luga, traffic through the Baltic states decreased to 7.1% of all Russian cargo turnover.

Nevertheless, in one year, taking into account the decline in logistics, these services continue to bring the three republics about $170 million per year. This amount was several times higher before 2014.

On a note. Despite the poor economic situation in the Russian Federation, many transport terminals have been built on its territory to date. This made it possible to significantly reduce the need for the Baltic transit and transport corridor.

The unexpected reduction in transit cargo turnover had a negative impact on the Baltic economy. As a result, massive layoffs of workers, numbering in the thousands, regularly take place at the ports. At the same time, railway transportation, freight and passenger, went under the knife, bringing stable losses.

The policy of the transit state and openness to Western investors led to an increase in unemployment in all sectors. People go to more developed countries to earn money and stay there to live.

Despite the deterioration, income levels in the Baltics remain significantly higher than in other post-Soviet republics.

Jurmala lost income

The 2015 scandal in show business became a stone in the garden of the Latvian economy. Some popular singers Latvian politicians banned entry from the Russian Federation into the country. As a result, the festival New wave"is now held in Sochi.

In addition, the KVN program refused to hold team performances in Jurmala. As a result, the tourism industry lost a lot of money.

After this, Russians began to buy less residential real estate in the Baltic countries. People are afraid that they might fall under the political millstone.

The Baltic (Baltic) countries include three former Soviet republics, not included in the CIS - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. All of them are unitary republics. In 2004, all three Baltic countries joined NATO and the European Union.
Baltic countries
Table 38

Feature geographical location Baltic countries is the presence of access to the Baltic Sea and neighboring position with Russian Federation. In the south, the Baltic countries border on Belarus (Latvia and Lithuania) and Poland (Lithuania). The countries of the region have a very important political-geographical position and an advantageous economic-geographical position.
The countries of the region are very poor in mineral resources. Among the fuel resources, peat is ubiquitous. The “richest” among the Baltic countries is Estonia, which has reserves of oil shale (Kohtla-Jarve) and phosphorites (Maardu). Latvia (Brocene) stands out for its limestone reserves. Famous springs mineral waters: in Latvia Baldone and Valmiera, in Lithuania - Druskininkai, Birštonas and Pabiře. in Estonia - Häädemeeste. The main wealth of the Baltic states is fishery and recreational resources.
In terms of population, the Baltic countries are among the small countries of Europe (see table 38). The population is distributed relatively evenly, and only on the coast the population density increases slightly.
All countries in the region are dominated by modern type reproduction, and everywhere the mortality rate exceeds the birth rate. The natural population decline is especially high in Latvia (-5%o) and Estonia (-4%o).
The gender composition, as in most European countries, is dominated by the female population. By age composition The population of the Baltic countries can be classified as an “aging nation”: in Estonia and Latvia, the share of pensioners exceeds the share of children, and only in Lithuania are these indicators equal.
All Baltic countries have a multinational population, and only in Lithuania do Lithuanians make up the absolute majority of the population - 82%, while in Latvia Latvians account for only 55% of the republic's population. In addition to indigenous peoples, there are many so-called Russian-speaking people living in the Baltic states: Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, and in Lithuania, Poles. The largest share of Russians is in Latvia (30%) and Estonia (28%), but it is in these countries that the problem of respecting the rights of the Russian-speaking population is most acute.
Estonians and Latvians are Protestants by religion, while Lithuanians and Poles are Catholics. The majority of the believing Russian-speaking population considers themselves Orthodox.
Typical for the Baltic states high level urbanization: from 67% in Lithuania to 72% in Estonia, but there are no millionaire cities. Largest city Each republic has its capital. Among other cities, it should be noted in Estonia - Tartu, in Latvia - Daugavpils, Jurmala and Liepaja, in Lithuania - Kaunas, Klaipeda and Siauliai.
Employment structure of the population of the Baltic countries
Table 39

The Baltic countries are provided with highly qualified labor resources. Most of of the population of the countries in the region is employed in the non-productive sector (see table 39).
In all the Baltic countries, emigration of the population predominates: the Russian-speaking population goes to Russia, Estonians to Finland, Latvians and Lithuanians to Germany and the USA.
After the collapse of the USSR, the economic structure and specialization of the Baltic countries changed significantly: the predominance of the manufacturing industry was replaced by the predominance of the service sector, and some branches of precision and transport engineering, light industry, in which the Baltic countries specialized, practically disappeared. At the same time, the importance of agriculture and the food industry increased.
Secondary importance have electricity in the region (83% of Lithuania’s electricity is provided by the largest in Europe Ignalina
NPP), ferrous metallurgy, represented by the only center of pigment metallurgy in Liepaja (Latvia).
The branches of industrial specialization of the modern Baltic include: Precision engineering, especially the electrical industry - the production of radio equipment in Estonia (Tallinn), Latvia (Riga) and Lithuania (Kaunas), televisions (Šiauliai) and refrigerators (Vilnius) in Lithuania; machine tool building in Lithuania (Vilnius) and ship repair in Latvia (Riga) and Lithuania (Klaipeda). The transport engineering industry developed in Latvia during Soviet times (production of electric trains and minibuses) has practically ceased to exist; Chemical industry: production mineral fertilizers(Maardu and Kohtla-Jarve in Estonia, Ventspils in Latvia and Jonava in Lithuania), production chemical fibers(Daugavpils in Latvia and Vilnius in Lithuania), perfume industry (Riga in Latvia) and household chemicals (Tallinn in Estonia and Daugavpils in Latvia); Forestry industry, especially furniture and pulp and paper (Tallinn, Tartu and Narva in Estonia, Riga and Jurmala in Latvia, Vilnius and Klaipeda in Lithuania); Light industry: textile (Tallinn and Narva in Estonia, Riga in Latvia, Kaunas and Panevezys in Lithuania), clothing (Tallinn and Riga), knitwear (Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius) and footwear industry (Vilnius and Siachiuliai in Lithuania); Food industry, wherein special role plays dairy and fish (Tallinn, Tartu, Pärnu, Riga, Liepaja, Klaipeda, Vilnius).
The Baltic countries are characterized by the development of intensive agriculture with a predominance of livestock farming, where dairy cattle breeding and pig breeding play a leading role. Almost half of the cultivated area is occupied by feed crops. Rye, barley, potatoes, vegetables, flax are grown everywhere, and in Latvia and Lithuania - sugar beets. Lithuania stands out among the Baltic countries in terms of agricultural production volume.
The Baltic countries are characterized by a high level of development of the transport system: where road, rail, pipeline and sea modes of transport stand out. The largest seaports in the region are Tallinn and Pärnu - in Estonia; Riga, Ventspils (oil tanker), Liepaja - in Latvia and Klaipeda - in Lithuania. Estonia has a ferry connection with Finland (Tallinn - Helsinki), and Lithuania with Germany (Klaipeda - Mukran).
Among industries non-production sphere The recreational sector is of particular importance. The main tourist and recreational centers of the Baltic states are Tallinn, Tartu and Pärnu - in Estonia;
Riga, Jurmala, Tukums and Baldone - in Latvia; Vilnius, Kaunas, Palanga, Trakai, Druskininkai and Birštonas are in Lithuania.
The main foreign economic partners of the Baltic states are the countries Western Europe(especially Finland, Sweden and Germany), as well as Russia, and a reorientation of foreign trade towards Western countries is clearly observed.
The Baltic countries export instruments, radio and electrical equipment, communications, perfumes, products household chemicals, forestry, light, dairy and fishing industries.
Imports are dominated by fuel (oil, gas, coal), industrial raw materials (ferrous and non-ferrous metals, apatite, cotton), vehicles, and consumer goods.
Questions and assignments Give an economic and geographical description of the Baltic states. Name the factors that determine the specialization of the economy of the Baltic countries. Describe the problems of regional development. Give the economic and geographical characteristics of Estonia. Give the economic and geographical characteristics of Latvia. Give the economic and geographical characteristics of Lithuania.

Baltics: descriptions for travelers and reviews from tourists. Resorts and hotels, maps and attractions of the Baltic states. Tours and trips to the Baltics.

• Tours for May Worldwide
• Last minute tours Worldwide

Ancient Terra Mariana, “seaside land”, modern Baltic states are pine trees and sand, drops of amber on deserted beaches, rebellious waves Baltic Sea, measured rhythm of life and carefully preserved folk traditions.

An impressive amount health resorts combined with a mild climate, where summers are not too hot and winters are moderately cold, provides the Baltics with a stable flow of tourists throughout the year: prices for treatment here are much lower than, say, Carlsbad, but the results are no worse. In addition, there are a lot of historical attractions here, interesting museums, delicious National dishes and the constant hospitality of the local residents.

Baltic tourism is a real long-liver in the Russian tourism market: there is no time to go to “almost real” Europe - with Catholic cathedrals, developed infrastructure and such a detached view of life from socialist pseudo-seriousness - any Soviet employee considered it happiness. Times have changed, but the feeling of belonging to the elite remains with the Baltics to this day.

Today, tourism in the Baltics is, first of all, “excursion”, treatment and “vegetative” relaxation without resort noise and din, but surrounded by pristine nature and healing pine air. Riga, Vilnius, Tallinn and ancient Koenigsberg are home to a lot of interesting sights. Old city Riga seems to have stepped out of a medieval engraving (by the way, the Latvian capital is one of the few European cities that have completely preserved its historical appearance) - narrow cobbled streets, doll-like town halls and cathedrals, mysterious alleys and mystical cellars of ancient houses. Lithuania has prepared baroque monuments of Vilnius and Kaunas for attentive tourists, Estonia will surprise you with Gothic churches and cathedrals, the ruins of monasteries and castles of the Knights of the Teutonic Order, and good old and very dear Kaliningrad will introduce you to the secrets of the life of Immanuel Kant and tell you about the glorious history of the Russian fleet.

Inexpensive and high-quality treatment is another reason for tourist interest in the Baltic states. For those who just need to “tighten the screws” a little - to relax after a hard year, lose weight, freshen up and look prettier - there is a direct road to Jurmala. For peace of mind there are magnificent beaches with wonderful white quartz sand, mineral springs “for drinking and lying down”, healing mud, and, among other things, the largest water park in Europe and the annual music Festival(and what, if not music, contributes to one hundred percent satisfaction with life!). We advise fans of solitude and meditation to pay attention to the islands of Estonia: in addition to the popular Saaremaa, there are more than a thousand uninhabited islands, where even the most materialistic-minded nature will certainly fall under the charm of silence, nature and the alchemy of life.

Finally, for those who want to walk along the Baltic seaside in a damp and quiet autumn, picking up perfectly polished amber fragments, and at the same time absolutely not move away from their homeland, we recommend going to the Kaliningrad region - the westernmost region of our vast land. Marveling at the pine trees forever bowing in bizarre bows on the Curonian Spit, here you will certainly exhale: “How beautiful Russia is!”

Baltics, also Baltic(German: Baltikum) - region in Northern Europe, which includes the territories of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, as well as the former East Prussia. From the name of this territory comes the name of one of the Indo-Germanic language groups - the Balts. .

The indigenous population of the Baltic countries, as a rule, does not use the term “Baltic”, considering it a relic Soviet era, and prefers to talk about the “Baltic countries”. In Estonian there is only the word Baltimaad (Baltic countries), it is translated into Russian as Baltic, Baltic or Baltic. In Latvian and Lithuanian the word Baltija is used to refer to the region.

If you don't find any of the Schubert sheets you need, take a look

Need a map? Write ICQ 9141401 or Mail: - let's agree!

Lithuania (lit. Lietuva)

the official name is the Republic of Lithuania (lit. Lietuvos Respublika), - a state in Europe, on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea. In the north it borders with Latvia, in the southeast - with Belarus, in the southwest - with Poland and the Kaliningrad region of Russia. Member of NATO (since 2004), EU (since 2004), WTO, UN. Country that has signed the Schengen Agreement. From 1919 to 1939 the capital was Kaunas. The capital of modern Lithuania is Vilnius (from 1939 to the present). National emblem- Pursuit or Vytis (lit. Vytis) - a white horseman (Vityaz) on a red background, the national flag is yellow-green-red.

Grand Duchy of Lithuania

In the XIII-XIV centuries, the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania grew rapidly and reached the shores of the Black Sea. At the same time, the Lithuanian princes waged a difficult struggle with the Teutonic Order, which was defeated in 1410 at the Battle of Grunwald by the united troops of the Lithuanian lands and Poland.

In 1385 Grand Duke The Lithuanian Jogaila (Jogaila) undertook by the Treaty of Krevo to unite Lithuania and Poland in a personal union in the event of his election as the Polish king. In 1386 he was crowned King of Poland. In 1387, Lithuania was baptized and adopted Western Christianity as its official religion. Since 1392, Lithuania was actually ruled by Grand Duke Vytautas (Vytautas), Jogaila's cousin and formal governor. During his reign (1392-1430) Lithuania reached the height of its power.

Casimir Jagiellon expanded the international influence of the Jagiellon dynasty - he subjugated Prussia to Poland, and placed his son on the Czech and Hungarian thrones. In 1492-1526 there was politic system Jagiellonian states, covering Poland (with vassals Prussia and Moldova), Lithuania, the Czech Republic and Hungary.

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

In 1569, a union was concluded with Poland in Lublin (the day before, the Ukrainian lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania were annexed to Poland). According to the Act of the Union of Lublin, Lithuania and Poland were ruled by a jointly elected king, and state affairs were decided in the common Sejm. However, legal systems, military and governments remained separate. In the 16th-18th centuries, gentry democracy dominated in Lithuania, the Polonization of the gentry and its rapprochement with the Polish gentry took place. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was losing its Lithuanian national character, Polish culture developed there.

Included Russian Empire

In the 18th century, after Northern War, The Polish-Lithuanian state fell into decay, falling under Russian protectorate. In 1772, 1793 and 1795, the entire territory of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was divided between Russia, Prussia and Austria. Most of the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was annexed to Russia. Attempts to restore statehood caused the transition of the Polish-Lithuanian nobility to Napoleon's side in 1812, as well as the uprisings of 1830-1831 and 1863-1864, which ended in defeat. In the second half of the 19th century, a national movement began to take shape.

Latvia, Republic of Latvia

(Latvian: Latvija, Latvijas Republika) - Baltic state, capital - Riga (721 thousand people, 2006). Geographically it belongs to Northern Europe. The country was named after the ethnonym of the people - Latvieši (Latvian latvieši). Member of the EU and NATO, member of the Schengen agreements. Latvia first emerged as independent state in 1918 (Riga Peace Treaty of 1920 between the RSFSR and Latvia). From 1940 to 1991 it was part of the USSR as the Latvian SSR.

1201 - Bishop Albert von Buxhoeveden founded the city of Riga on the site of Liv villages. To better organize the inclusion of the lands of the Livonians and Latgalians into the bosom of the church (and at the same time their political conquest), he also founded the Order of the Sword Bearers (after the defeat at the Battle of Saul - the Livonian Order as part of the Teutonic Order), which later became an independent political and economic force; the order and the bishop often fought with each other. [source?] In 1209, the bishop and the order agreed on the division of captured and not yet captured lands. appeared on the map of Europe public education German crusaders - Livonia (named after the local Livonian ethnic group). It included the territory of present-day Estonia and Latvia. Many Livonian cities subsequently became members of the prosperous North European trade union - the Hanseatic League. However, subsequently, torn apart by internecine clashes of the Order, the Bishopric of Riga (since 1225 - the Archbishopric of Riga) and other, more insignificant bishops, as well as their vassals, Livonia began to weaken, which attracted increased attention from the surrounding states - the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Russia , and later also Sweden and Denmark. Moreover, Livonia (especially Riga, which was the largest of the cities of the Hanseatic Trade Union) due to its geographical location has always been an important trading region (part of the “Road from the Varangians to the Greeks” ran through its lands in the past).

17th century

During the 17th century - the formation of the Latvian nation as a result of consolidation individual peoples: Latgalians, Selovians, Semigallians, Curonians and Livs. Some Latgalians still retain their unique language, although in Latvia and even among the Latgalians themselves there are so many dialects and dialects that many historians and linguists consider this language to be one of the “big” dialects of Latvian.[source?] This is the official position of the state. , on this side, supported by a very strong feeling of patriotism among Latvians (the three stars on the coat of arms of Latvia and in the hands of the woman Freedom on top of the monument of the same name in the center of Riga symbolize the three regions of Latvia - Kurzeme-Zemgale, Vidzeme and Latgale)

XVIII century

1722 - as a result of the Northern War, part of the territory of modern Latvia cedes to the Russian Empire. 1795 - during the third partition of Poland, the entire territory of present-day Latvia was united within Russia.

There is a lot of interesting things in the history of the development of each Baltic country - there is something to learn, in some things to take an example, and in some things you can learn from the mistakes of others.

Despite the small area and small population, they manage to occupy a significant position in various international economic and trade associations.

If you are wondering: what kind of countries are the Baltic countries, how did they develop and how do they live, then this article is just for you, because here you can find all the necessary answers.

In this article we will look at their history, development and current position on the world political and economic stage.

Baltic countries. Compound

Neither more nor less, but three states are called the Baltic countries. At one time they were part of the USSR. Today, all Baltic countries are completely independent.

The list looks like this:

They are both similar and different in their history, development, internal color, people, and traditions.

The Baltic countries cannot boast of large reserves natural resources, which affects the economy. The demographic situation has negative dynamics, since mortality exceeds birth rates. The high level of emigration to other more developed European countries also has an impact.

To summarize, in many ways modern development the Baltic countries is at the expense of the European Union. Of course, this affects both internal and external foreign policy these countries.

Since 1992, Estonia has chosen the priority path European development and began to turn away from any interactions with Moscow, while maintaining warm relations.

The rapid transition to a market economy was facilitated by loans and external credits worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Besides, European countries returned to Estonia the funds that had been frozen from them since the republic joined Soviet Union in the 40s of the 20th century.

The global financial crisis has greatly affected the Estonian economy

In just five years after 2000, the country's GDP increased by half. However, the global financial crisis did not spare Estonia and increased the unemployment rate from 5 to 15%. For the same reason, in 2009 the level of industrial production fell by more than 70%.

Estonia is a fairly active member of NATO and takes part in most peacekeeping operations, for example in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Multinational culture

It's hard to believe, but one country combines the cultures of Latvia, Finland, Russia, Lithuania, Belarus, Sweden, as well as other countries. This is due to the fact that at one time rulers chose one or another vector of development.

Estonia can be proud of its commitment to modernizing all processes. Since 2000, it has been possible to report taxes electronically. Since 2008, all meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers are not recorded in paper minutes - everything happens electronically.

Constant introduction of new information technologies

Imagine - more than 78% of the country's population uses the Internet. This indicator is one of the best in all of Europe. In the world by level of development information technologies ranks 24th in a ranking of 142 countries.

In this regard, Estonians really have something to be proud of.

Despite mass computerization, spiritual values, as well as the preservation surrounding nature are also a priority in the development of this country. It can be especially noted national cuisine, which is characterized by the so-called peasant spirit from the past.

The Baltic countries are a small and beautiful corner on planet Earth

There is a lot to learn from three small countries. Despite the fact that they are completely energy dependent on other states, they managed to make a significant leap in their development compared to other countries that gained independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

So, what kind of countries are the Baltic countries, how did they develop and how do they live? We hope this article was useful to you and you were able to find all the necessary answers regarding the history, development and current position of these states on the world political and economic arena.