Product Description
Lithuania restored her independence, after half a century of Soviet occupation, in the immediate aftermath of the failed Moscow coup in August 1991. As the multi-national Soviet state disintegrated Lithuania evolved, without war or violence, from a communist state and a command economy to a liberal democracy, a free market, and a society guaranteeing human and minority rights. Lithuania therefore offers a notable example of peaceful transition, all the more impressive in the light of the bloody conflict elsewhere in the former Soviet Union or Yugoslavia, where the aspirations to independence of the constituent republics were either violently resisted or dissolved into inter-ethnic violence. Equally remarkable has been Lithuania's evident determination to 'return to Europe' after half a century of separation, even at the price of submerging its recently restored sovereign rights in the supranational European Union. The cost of membership in western economic and security organization are judged to be ... Read more

Product Description
Foreign policy, domestic policy, political system and parties, government and administrative structure, international activity and more. Updated annually ... Read more

Product Description
From January 11 to 14, 1990, Mikhail Gorbachev went to Lithuania to persuade the leaders of that rebel Soviet republic to remain within the traditional Soviet system. From January 11 to 13, 1991, Soviet troops killed unarmed civilians in Vilnius in an effort to persuade the people of Lithuania to overthrow their leaders. Finally, in September, 1991, Gorbachev, presiding over the collapse of the Soviet Union, recognized Lithuanian independence. It was Lithuania, above all, that demonstrated to the world the bankruptcy of the Soviet empire. This book takes the reader into the maelstrom of politics in three different capitals during the period 1988 to 1991. In Vilnius, Lithuanians surged forward in what they called their "national rebirth"; in Moscow, Gorbachev struggled to maintain his position in a crumbling empire; and in Washington, the administration doggedly supported Gorbachev as the foundation of its East European policy. In the end, the Lithuanians, in a remarkable display of peaceful, non-violent resistance, were the only ones to achieve their ambitions through the creation of an independent state. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great for big-picture of the independence movement in Lithuania
Senn, an eyewitness to the independence movement in Lithuania, writes a concise history of how Lithuanians established their independence from the Soviet Union in 1990 and possibly doomed the Union for collapse. The independence movement was a big mess: there are so many contradictory accounts that it is hard to know where to start. Senn manages to organize them in a logical fashion, laying out local developments along side broader political shifts in Moscow. He does not just skim over the events, but gives powerful insights as to "why" -- the motivations and thought process of each party. You start to appreciate the complexities and the careful balancing act between extremist nationalists ("gives us freedom or death") and extremist conservatives ("bring back Lenin").

The book is not a detailed account of actual events, but a "big picture" study of different kind of political powers and ideas at work. Special attention is paid to Gorbachev's failure to anticipate, understand, and respond to the "nationalities question": the rising independence movements in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and resurgence of ethnic conflicts in Caucasus. One thing that I miss in the book is at least short comparison between these three independence movements. Also, Senn pays little attention to Sajudis and rather focuses on the Lithuanian Communist Party (LCP), led by Brazauskas, and its role as moderate force in between extremist Lithuanians and conservative Moscow.

Overall, it is great book by a very capable scholar that gives you great insight of what was going on in the minds of major political players and not minutia detail of each street protest. ... Read more

Product Description
Lithuania Industrial And Business Directory (World Business, Investment and Government Library) ... Read more

Product Description
US Assistance to Lithuania Handbook ... Read more

Product Description
Since the end of the Cold War there has been an increased interest in The Baltics. This volume brings together three countries, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, to provide a comprehensive and analytical guide integrating history, political science, economic development and contemporary events into one account. Since gaining their independence each country has developed at its own pace with its own agenda and facing its own obstacles. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The Baltics in the 20th century
This book will help you to better understand Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which have remarkably different personalities, although often collectively referred to as the Baltics. The countries are treated separately, as they deserve to be, illustrating their individual ambitions, which are often at odds to each other.

I was very impressed with Thomas Lane's scholarly but easily accessible account of Lithuania. In it he gives one of the most balanced appraisals of the country which I've read, taking it up to 1997 with the election of Valdas Adamkus. He charts Lithuania from its post WWI independence to its post Soviet independence, noting its tremendous resiliency in the face of two totalitarian regimes -- the Soviet Union and Germany.The country had a difficult time carving out its niche in the 1920's, battling Poland as well in staking out its independence, only to lose Vilnius to Poland's overextending claims. Lane gives special attention to this inter-war period, as it served as the inspiration for Lithuania's post-Soviet independence in 1991.

He recounts Lithuania's uneasy relationship with Germany and its role in the Holocaust, but is very careful in assessing blame. Lithuania quite literally found itself between a rock and a hard place, falling victim to the Soviet Union in the end.Lane provides a detailed study of the Soviet era and the impact it had on Lithuania's agrarian economy. Through this period, Lithuania still managed to retain its identity despite the prevailing Soviet influence.

Lane covers the key events of the 80's which led to independence, and the difficulties Lithuania faced in the 90's as it tried to distance itself from Moscow. He provides an excellent appraisal of the various political parties and the affect the rural vote still has on the outcome of the elections.Although Lithuania was still struggling to form a market economy by the time Lane concludes his account in the late 90's, the country has since enjoyed an economic boom, with the highest growth rate in Eastern Europe.

There is also a fine appraisal of Lithuania's current foreign policy and its ability to form key European alliances in the 90's, which it had been unable to do in the 20's. It no longer has a heavy reliance on Russia, having become an integral part of the European economy. ... Read more

Product Description
This series analyzes the status-quo of the social protection systems in the 13 candidate countries. Amongst other topics, it covers the economical, social, and demographic conditions regarding the social protection and its development within the last five to ten years. ... Read more

Product Description
Completely updated and revised for this new edition, our unique electronic book on two CD-ROMs has an amazing collection of the finest federal documents and resources about Lithuania, providing encyclopedic coverage of all aspects of the country. This disc set provides a truly fantastic reference source, with over one hundred thousand pages reproduced in Adobe Acrobat format! There is complete coverage of newsworthy material about Lithuania, including USAID reports (over 4000 pages), doing business, trade, Baltic Caucus, U.S. - Lithuania relations, nuclear power, NATO accession, war on terror, diplomatic list, Clinton administration, Vice President Cheney visit, European Union, and more.This incredible and comprehensive series on the countries of the world contains material from the State Department, Department of Defense, White House, and cabinet agencies including Agriculture, Energy, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.There is complete information about geography, people, government, the economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.In addition to the nation-specific material, as a bonus we have included reports about every country on the globe, with 271 nations, dependent areas, and other entities identified by the Central Intelligence Agency. The CIA World Factbook is considered an invaluable "world encyclopedia" reference book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Piece of C**P!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This product is the biggest rip off. They tout it as a travel guide when in actuality it's PDFs of material available for free on the internet. There's nothing about this product that vaguely resembles a travel guide. I will be sending mine back and demanding a refund. Amazon should know better than to sell this garbage. ... Read more

Product Description
Completely updated and revised for this new edition, our unique electronic book on two CD-ROMs has an amazing collection of the finest federal documents and resources about Lithuania, providing encyclopedic coverage of all aspects of the country. This disc set provides a truly fantastic reference source, with over one hundred thousand pages reproduced in Adobe Acrobat format! There is complete coverage of newsworthy material about Lithuania, including USAID reports (over 4000 pages), doing business, trade, Baltic Caucus, U.S. - Lithuania relations, nuclear power, NATO accession, war on terror, diplomatic list, Clinton administration, Vice President Cheney visit, European Union, and more.This incredible and comprehensive series on the countries of the world contains material from the State Department, Department of Defense, White House, and cabinet agencies including Agriculture, Energy, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.There is complete information about geography, people, government, the economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues.In addition to the nation-specific material, as a bonus we have included reports about every country on the globe, with 271 nations, dependent areas, and other entities identified by the Central Intelligence Agency. The CIA World Factbook is considered an invaluable "world encyclopedia" reference book. ... Read more

Product Description
Lithuania Diplomatic Handbook ... Read more

Product Description
Loyalty and betrayal are among key concepts of the ethic of nationalism. Marriage of state and culture, which seems the essence of the congruence between political power structure and collective identity, usually offers a simple explanation of loyalty and dissent. Loyalty is seen as once-and-for-all commitment of the individual to his or her nation, whereas betrayal is identified as a failure to commit him or herself to a common cause or as a diversion from the object of political loyalty and cultural/linguistic fidelity. For conservative or radical nationalists, even social and cultural critique of one’s people and state can be regarded as treason, whereas for their liberal counterparts it is precisely what constitutes political awareness, civic virtue, and a conscious dedication to the people and culture. This book is the first attempt to provide a discursive map of Lithuanian liberal and conservative nationalism. Analyzing the works and views of dissenters and critics of society and culture, we can reveal a mode of being of liberal nationalism as a social and cultural criticism. This volume is of interest for intellectual historians, social theorists, students of East-Central European thought, and anyone interested in Baltic studies and the new members of the EU."Dissent: act of betrayal, or loyalty? Leonidas Donskis' new remarkable study is one consistent, thorough and dedicated effort to provide an answer to that question."Zygmunt Bauman(from the Preface) ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, published by U.S. Government Printing Office on October 6, 2008. The length of the article is 603 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Remarks following a meeting with President Valdas Adamkus of Lithuania.(Week Ending Friday, October 3, 2008)
Author: Gale Reference Team
Publication: Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (Newsletter)
Date: October 6, 2008
Publisher: U.S. Government Printing Office
Volume: 44Issue: 39Page: 1277(2)

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, published by U.S. Government Printing Office on January 19, 2009. The length of the article is 335 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Memorandum on Provision of Atomic Information to Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.(Week Ending Friday, January 16, 2009)(Brief article)
Author: George W. Bush
Publication: Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (Newsletter)
Date: January 19, 2009
Publisher: U.S. Government Printing Office
Volume: 45Issue: 2Page: 47(1)

Article Type: Brief article

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, published by U.S. Government Printing Office on January 19, 2009. The length of the article is 607 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Message to the Congress transmitting provision of Atomic information to Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.(Week Ending Friday, January 16, 2009)
Author: George W. Bush
Publication: Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (Newsletter)
Date: January 19, 2009
Publisher: U.S. Government Printing Office
Volume: 45Issue: 2Page: 54(2)

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more