Conclusion

All the above mentioned facts from the history of the foreign policy of the U.S.S.R. towards the Baltic States, as also regarding the attitude of these States during the period 1917 to 1940, lead to. the following indisputable conclusions :—

1. The Soviet Union invariably and systematically manifested a sincere desire and had striven for peaceful and good-neighbourly relations with the Baltic States.

2. Although the separation of the Baltic States from Russia had resulted in considerable political, economic and strategic inconveniences, the Soviet Government had loyally recognised and given juridicial sanction to this separation and with equal loyalty had respected the independence and the integrity of these States.

3. For many years every proposal made by the Soviet Government to the Governments of the Baltic States was directed both towards the strengthening of peaceful mutual relations between the U.S.S.R. and these countries, and the consolidation of the real independence of the Baltic States.

4. The only condition demanded by the Soviet Government was that the Baltic States should not allow their countries to be used as places d’armes for anti-Soviet conspiracies or as jumping-off grounds for anti-Soviet attacks. The Soviet Union demanded only one essential condition, viz., that no country should be permitted or given any opportunity to create a Protectorate in any form whatsoever over the Baltic countries. There is no reasonable and unbiased statesman in any part of the world who would not recognise that this condition laid down by the Soviet Union was a loyal and just condition, and in no way violated the sovereign rights of the Baltic States. On the contrary, this demand only strengthened the real independence and security of these States.

5. But both the foreign and home policy pursued by the Govern- ments of the Baltic States during the whole of the period under review, not only demonstrated their hostility to the Soviet Republic, but systematically violated precisely the one essential condition for peaceful, good-neighbourly co-existence—the condition which, had it been respected, would have formed a real basis for their independence and self-determination and the maintenance of peace.

6. The behaviour of the Baltic States in 1939-1940 showed that these States had become fully “ ripe ” for submitting without resistance to any demands made by Hitler for furthering the attack he was preparing on the Soviet Union. In particular the behaviour of Finland, the only Baltic State which had not entered the Soviet Union in 1940 confirms the correctness of this view. Finland not only gave her consent to the entry of German troops, but also to the transformation of her territory into a jumping-off ground for an attack on the Soviet Union. Moreover, she herself is participating in this attack.

7. The U.S.S.R. never, either in words or in deeds, threatened the independence of the Baltic countries. On the contrary, she was herself interested in their independence. There was therefore no reason whatever for the formation in the Baltic States of various blocs and coalitions directed ostensibly against " threats on the part of the U.S.S.R." In any case, none of these blocs and coalitions could have defended the Baltic States had the U.S.S.R. really desired to violate their independence.

Given the goodwill of their Governments, the Baltic States could have become effective buffer States which might have eased the international position in Eastern Europe instead of making it more acute. Real friendship with the U.S.S.R. would have been the best guarantee for the independence of the Baltic States.

We have demonstrated above that the behaviour of the Governments of the Baltic States was of quite a different nature—it was not friendship, but hostility towards the Soviet Union which they encouraged during 20 years.

8. The Soviet Union could not but draw the only possible deduction from all these facts, and in 1940 it was constrained to demand that there should be a change in the Governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania—since their hostility towards the U.S.S.R. threatened the complete subordination of the Baltic States to German Fascism.

Only politically blind people or the hopelessly stupid did not understand that had Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia not entered the Soviet Union in 1940, they would have shared the fate of Czechoslovakia, Norway, Denmark and other countries which have been enslaved by Hitler.


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