We must help Gorbachev leave the path of confrontationby telling him in plain terms which Soviet actions will not be tolerated by the West. Many Baits consider a push for independence to be the only way they can survive as identifiable peoples. Since the secret protocol to the NaziSoviet nonaggression pact of 1939 that placed all three Baltic States into the Soviet sphere of influence. the Soviets have tried to absorb Lithuanians into Russia. This policy began with massive deportations and the immigration of nonBaltic people from the rest of the Soviet Union. and it continues today. Shall Lithuania be free? This question ought to be determined on the basis of popular sovereigntya free and fair plebiscite of the people of Lithuania.
Keywords matched
deportations immigration