Subj: Lat Chat Sunday, November 21, 1999 and More! (Russian sanctions)
Date: 11/20/99
File: D:\+www.latvians.com\Aug93\Picts\0258-31-vecriga-3brali.jpg (77995 bytes)
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Sveiki, all!

Our apologies once more for a long mailer... in the news, not only did Russia break off trade relations with Latvia, but the Duma raked up the Latvian language law again and passed a resolution saying that: "Latvia's being a part of the Soviet Union was grounded by fact and by law from the international juridical point of view." Well, that certainly got our attention, we did a little research, and, well, you know how we can get about things like this!

As always, please join us on Lat Chat, starting around 9:00-9:30pm ET, click on the following link on AOL: Town Square - Latvian chat

Ar visu labu,

In the news, Russia slapped trade sanctions on Latvia. Furthermore, the Russian Duma passed a resolution denouncing the Latvian language law from July, stating that the “Latvia’s being a part of the Soviet Union was grounded by fact and by law from the international juridical point of view.” Do we need any further proof that the Russians are not to be trusted, not one iota?

Once Germany abandoned the Baltics to Stalin (the infamous "Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact"—the very existence of which Russia only recently!!! acknowledged), the Baltics were left defenseless, having been cut off from France and Britain.

Under the threat of Soviet warplanes, Estonia was forced to accept, on September 28, 1939, a Pact of Defense and Mutual Assistance with the USSR. Latvia followed October 5, and Lithuania October 10. The Soviets stationed (according to them) 25,000 troops in Estonia, 30,000 in Latvia, and 20,000 in Lithuania. The treaties guaranteed Baltic independence and reiterated Soviet non-interference in Baltic affairs.

In May, Molotov accused the Lithuanians of kidnapping two Russian soldiers, and, among other things, demanded that Lithuania form a government “capable of assuring proper fulfillment” of their pact with the USSR. The Latvians and Estonians were accused in turn, of attempting to overthrow the security agreemeent and issued ultimatums. Lithuania surrendered on June 15, 1940. Latvia and Estonia surrendered on June 17th. Soviet troops streamed into both countries. Russian “emissaries” accompanied the Red Army to supervise the formation of new pro-Soviet governments. By June 18, the occupation of the Baltics was complete.

That same day, the Russians imported 25,000 demonstrators by boat in Latvia, leading to bloody street disturbances. Ulmanis refused to sanction the demanded governmental changes. On June 20, an “announcement of the Secretariat of the President of the Republic” was published, indicating a new cabinet was formed—unaccompanied by the signature of any government official! Ulmanis was forced to resign in mid-July and was deported to Voroshilovsk on July 22. Yet, from the Soviet point of view, the Baltics were still independent states.

Some of the Baltic leaders continued to attempt to ride out the storm, attempting to retain formal independence. The Lithuanian Foreign Minister, Vincas Kreve-Mickevicius, met with Molotov on June 30th. Molotov was blunt in communicating the Soviet intent to occupy the entire region. And Molotov continued:

“You must take a good look at reality and understand that in the future small nations will have to disappear. Your Lithuania along with the other Baltic nations, including Finland, will have to join the glorious family of the Soviet Union. Therefore you should begin now to initiate your people into the Soviet system, which in the future shall reign everywhere, throughout all Europe; put into practice earlier in some places, as in the Baltic nations, later in others.”

Elections were scheduled for July 14th (Lithuania) and July 15th (Latvia and Estonia). Only nominations by “legal” organizations of individuals would be recognized. Of course, only Soviet organizations were legal at that point. Any alternate candidates were forced out through a combination of threats and violence. The ballot only carried the Soviet-sanctioned candidate—you could only register opposition by striking out the name. There was no other candidate. Balloting was open—an official would look at the ballot before it was dropped in the box. In Lithuania, you could vote as often as you like. Soviet troops were present in some balloting places.

Once the elections had been staged, it was only a matter of time until those puppet governments called for inclusion into the Soviet Union. All three Baltic People's Assemblies convened on July 21, 1940. Latvia and Lithuania applied for USSR membership; Estonia followed the next day.

The Supreme Soviet met August 1. After due “deliberation,” the Lithuanian petition was granted on August 3, Latvia on August 5, and Estonia on August 8. In less than two months, the Kremlin had completed its takeover of the Baltic States. Of the foreign powers, only Germany and Sweden (undoubtedly fearing Soviet incursion through Finland) recognized the annexation. De facto recognition followed from some, and others, like the U.S., continued to recognize the Baltic governments in exile as the true representatives of the Baltic States.

—Peters V.

[Summarized from "The Baltic States Years of Dependence 1940-1990," by Romuald Misiunas and Rein Taagepera—recognized as the definitive text on the Soviet period in the Baltics.]

In keeping with this week's unfortunate, but necessary, focus on the Soviet era, our link is to the Library of Congress, which has posted research on the Baltics (as well as many other countries), covering social aspects, geography, history, and so on. The historical section about Latvia is broken out by:

• Early History
• Independence, 1918-40
• The Soviet Period
• The Pursuit of Independence, 1987-91

It's well worth reading!

This week's items cover Latvian independence day, the pension reforms in Latvia, and Estonia joining the WTO, but, mostly, news of the Russian Duma's resolutions regarding Latvia.

• Dates in history, November 18, 1918
• Vote on Latvian pensions
• Russian envoy complains at U.N. about silence over “evident discrimination” against Russians in Estonia and Latvia; On campaign trail, Gore warns of dangers from a weak Russia and recommends “not turning our backs”
• Estonia joins the WTO
• Russian Duma slaps trade sanctions on Latvia (Reuters report)
• Same, reported by Itar-Tass
• Latvia regrets Duma actions
• Vaira Vike-Freiberga says building up Latvia should be the priority for all ethnic groups; repeats importance of joining NATO
• Soviet—oops, Russian—Duma decries Latvian language law, reminds the Latvian Saima that Latvia's membership in the USSR “was grounded by fact and by law”

LONDON, November 11 (Reuters)—Following are some of the major events to have occurred on November 18 in history: [excerpted]
1918 - The Latvian National Council proclaimed the independent Republic of Latvia, with Janis Cakste as president.
© 1999 Reuters Ltd.

By Anastasia Styopina
RIGA, November 12 (Reuters)—Latvians vote on Saturday in a referendum forced by the opposition in an attempt to block sweeping pension reforms that would raise the retirement age and sharply reduce benefits.
They will vote for or against government amendments to the pension law which are aimed at balancing a depleted social insurance budget that has been hit by the indexation of pension payments introduced in the run-up to general elections in 1998.
The government now sees it as crucial to cut back the payments, gradually raise the retirement age and curtail benefits for working pensioners in order to reduce the budget deficit to two percent of GDP by 2000.
Parliament originally approved the government's pension reforms, but the opposition blocked them by getting 10 percent of the voters to sign a petition calling for a referendum on the issue.
"If the amendments are rejected, the fiscal deficit will not stay at the planned level, it will be above two percent of GDP," finance ministry secretary Inguna Sudraba told Reuters.
The ministry said on Thursday the deficit would rise above three percent if the reforms are rejected as the pension budget would require additional expenditure of 50 million lats.
The referendum is going ahead despite changes last week to the original reforms to address opposition concerns.
Parliament's final vote on the 2000 state budget is set for December 2 and officials have said the referendum result will not block its initial adoption, although it would have to be amended in mid-year if the opposition win.
VOTE MAY HIT LAT CONFIDENCE
However, analysts say there could be a wave of speculation against the lat currency as fears of a possible devaluation would grow if the pension reforms are struck down.
"If the amendments are not accepted, there will be heightened interest from foreign banks to sell lats and buy dollars. They will speculate on a lat devaluation and the lat/dollar rate may move to the central bank's intervention level," said Sandris Pavlovs, a Hansabanka currency dealer.
The lat has been stable in recent months after being pushed during the summer to the weak end of its plus/minus one percent band of the IMF's SDR basket.
"Investors with lat positions are wise to watch the pending referendum on pensions, which may be seen as a test of the authorities' ability to take the necessary measures," Gunnar Tersman, a Stockholm-based Handelsbanken analyst, said.
But analysts say the referendum does not threaten goverment stability despite media speculation that Prime Minister Andris Skele might become frustrated and resign over unsuccessful attempts to push through his economic reforms.
"Even if the vote satisfies the opposition—that is if amendments are rejected—nothing will change in the government," said Askolds Klavins, a columnist with the leading newspaper Diena.
© 1999 Reuters Ltd.

ITAR-TASS…World News in Brief for Friday, November 12, 1999
UNITED NATIONS—A Russian envoy spoke out in the U.N. in defence of the Russian speakers residing in the former Soviet Baltic republics. "It is difficult to understand why the evident discrimination against the Russians and representatives of other non-title population residing in Latvia and Estonia is being consistently overlooked in silence. Russia will insist that Latvia and Estonia modify their approaches to human rights in compliance with the requirements set forth by the United Nations, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe," Russia's Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Alexander Zmeyevsky declared at a session of the Third Committee of the U.N. General Assembly.
NEW YORK—We are obliged to interact with Russia and China and not to make believe that we can turn our backs to them. The greatest threat to America stems not from the strength of Russia and China but from their weakness, U.S. Vice President Albert Gore declared in his speech at the Veterans Day celebrations in Marshalltown, Iowa.
© 1999 Itar-Tass, November 12 vfp/

GENEVA, November 15 (Reuters)—The former Soviet Baltic republic of Estonia, independent since 1991, became the 135th member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) at the weekend, officials said on Monday.
This followed the expiry of a regulation 30-day period since Estonia notified the WTO that it had completed ratification of the accession package it had negotiated with member countries.
Estonia follows its neighbour Latvia and some other former Soviet republics like Kyrghyzstan into the trade body. Georgia is expected to be join shortly.
But the largest component parts of the old Soviet Union—Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan—are some way from completing their entry negotiations. Diplomats say they believe it will be some years before Russia joins the organisation.
© 1999 Reuters Ltd.

MOSCOW, November 16 (Reuters)—Russia's State Duma, the lower house of parliament, on Tuesday passed a law slapping a trade ban on Baltic neighbour Latvia, though political analysts expected President Boris Yeltsin to veto it.
The law, passed in a second reading, foresees forcing the Russian government, companies and individuals to halt all trade with Latvia, which many politicians in Moscow accuse of discriminating against its Russian-speaking population.
"(It is forbidden) to export and import any goods to and from the Republic of Latvia, excluding supplies of medicines and other goods in the form of humanitarian aid," the law said.
The Communist-dominated Duma has spearheaded a campaign against Latvia, which regained its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991.
Some Russian politicians say strict citizenship laws adopted after independence effectively barred many Russian-speakers from becoming Latvian citizens. The law has since been eased.
But analysts said the sanctions law was aimed at boosting Duma members' support ahead of a general election on December 19 by appealing to Russian nationalist sentiment.
They also said it was unlikely the bill would be passed by the Federation Council, the upper house of parliament made up of regional governors, some of whose districts border Latvia.
Even if the regional bosses do pass it, Yeltsin is expected to veto a bill that would cut trade ties with a country which is still an important outlet for Russian oil.
© 1999 Reuters Ltd.

MOSCOW, November 16 (Itar-Tass)—The State Duma, or parliament's lower house, on Tuesday passed in the second reading a federal law on prevention of discrimination of Russians in Latvia.
The law stipulates Russia's economic sanctions against Latvia in connection with mass-scale violations of basic rights of Russian citizens and Russians with permanent residence in Latvia.
Under the law, the Russian government, legal and physical entities under Russia's jurisdiction are banned to conclude or execute any trade and economic deals with the Latvian government, state or municipal authorities and legal entities registered in Latvia.
The law suspends activities of all enterprises and organisations set up in Russia with participation of Latvian investment. It also suspends operations with bank accounts in keeping with Russian legislation.
The law proclaims void any deals concluded with Latvia's legal and physical entities.
Despite objections from the Russian government against the law in its draft phase, which said [it] would break Russia's international obligations, the Duma voted for it, 255, with no votes against or abstentions.
The Duma also passed in the second reading a federal law on humanitarian aid to Latvia's Russians in connection with violation of their rights in Latvia.
lyu/gor © 1999 Itar-Tass

RIGA, November 16 (Reuters)—Latvia expressed regret over a bill approved by Russia's State Duma lower house on Tuesday to slap trade sanctions on the Baltic state, saying it chilled already frosty relations.
The law, passed in its second reading, forces the Russian government, companies and individuals to halt all trade with Latvia, which many politicians in Moscow accuse of discriminating against its Russian-speaking population.
"In no way can this law further existing cooperation between Latvia and Russia," a spokesman quoted Latvian Foreign Minister Indulis Berzinsh as saying.
"We have to state with regret that the law foresees stopping practically all economic and financial deals with Latvian companies and individuals," he added.
Latvia, which regained its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, is still an important market for Russian oil.
The bill must still pass a third and final reading, seen as a formality, in the communist-dominated Duma. The lower house has spearheaded a campaign against Latvia.
Analysts said the sanctions law was aimed at boosting Duma members' support ahead of a general election on December 19 by appealing to Russian nationalist sentiment.
Berzinsh was quoted as saying he thought neither the Federation Council nor President Boris Yeltsin agreed with the bill.
"Latvia is aware of the Russian government and presidential administration having a different opinion in this matter, who admit that accepting such a law would be against international legal norms, and Russian and Latvian agreements," he said
"It doesn't conform with Russia's own national interests," he added.
© 1999 Reuters Ltd.

MOSCOW, November 18 (Itar-Tass)—Nezavisimaya Gazeta published on Thursday an interview with Latvian President Ms.Vaira Vike-Freiberga, in which she said, responding to a question about prospects of the development of relations between Riga and Moscow after the parliamentary election in Russia: "I am ready to take any initiatives, if this helps improve Latvian-Russian relations." At the same time, she admitted that "in the past we had solid trade relations with Russia, while today our trade was diversified and shifted towards the Western market."
According to her information, "Russia is holding the fifth place after Lithuania by the scope of trade relations, while our trade with European countries reached 60 per cent."
Vaira Vike-Freiberga came from Canada and was elected by the Saima to the post of president of the Latvian Republic last July. She said in the interview that the most important thing "both for citizens and non-citizens of our country" (meaning the Russian-speaking population of Latvia) is "the improvement of living conditions, the development of economy and the overall development of the state." Responding to the question about how soon Latvia, the only country in the region where a programme of the integration of society was drawn up, resolves its inter-ethnic problems, she said: "It is better to look forward than to keep looking back all the time."
Speaking about the joining of NATO by Latvia, she said that "the joining of NATO is a priority task of our foreign policy. The purpose of this priority task is to ensure our external security." Ms.Vike-Freiberga expressed regret over the negative attitude of Russia to this intention. She said "Russia, on the contrary, should be pleased that order and peace will be established in the area after we join NATO, and the threats, which are typical of other regions without this factor, will be out of the question here."
rom/ © 1999 Itar-Tass

MOSCOW, November 19 (Itar-Tass)—A statement of the Russian Duma on the Latvian parliament's adoption of a state language law on July 8, 1999, was made on Friday.
The State Duma considers it its duty to "remind deputies of the Latvian Saima that Latvia's being a part of the Soviet Union was grounded by fact and by law from the international juridical point of view, and voices concern at the discrimination of Russians in the Republic of Latvia, including the announcement of the Latvian language as 'the only state language on territory of the Latvian Republic and the foreign status of the Russian language'."
The State Duma strongly rejects "the doctrine of the responsibility of Russia and the Russian people for the complicated history of building the Latvian state, formation of the Latvian culture and the Latvian language", which has been made a state policy in the Latvian Republic. The Duma "states that the doctrine not only crosses out the history of more than two centuries long co-existence of the Russian and Latvian peoples in a single state but also creates an absolutely new international legal situation."
yer/fil © 1999 Itar-Tass

As early as 1993 (when this picture was taken), Peters knew Latvia was heading towards becoming more cosmopolitan when he spied this gaggle of Japanese tourists in Riga, checking out the "Tris Brali" (Three Brothers), the oldest residences in Riga, dating from the 15th century.