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The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the military occupation and annexation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania by the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany.

According to the Governments of Baltic states, , the State Department of the United States of America , the U.S. courts of law , the European Parliament, , the European Court of Human Rights., and the United Nations Human Rights Council , these three countries were invaded, occupied and illegally incorporated into the Soviet Union under provisions of the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact first by the Soviet Union, then by Nazi Germany from 1941-1944.

Pre-1939

The four countries on the Baltic Sea that were formerly parts of the Russian Empire — Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — consolidated their borders and independence after the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian independence wars following the end of World War I by 1920 (see Treaty of Tartu, Latvian-Soviet Riga Peace Treaty and Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920).

In 1924 Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia sealed a pact of mutual defense against eventual aggressors. Ten years later, the Stalinist USSR pledged to not attack these three Baltic States until 1944.

When World War II started in September 1939, the fate of the Baltic countries had been already decided in the German-Soviet Nonaggression Pact and its Secret Additional Protocol of August 1939.

The Soviet ultimatums in 1939

Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact

Early in the morning of August 24, 1939, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed a 10-year non-aggression pact, called the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. Most notably, the pact contained a secret protocol, revealed only after Germany's defeat in 1945, according to which the states of Northern and Eastern Europe were divided into German and Soviet "spheres of influence". In the North, Finland, Estonia and Latvia were assigned to the Soviet sphere. Poland was to be partitioned in the event of its "political rearrangement"—the areas east of the Narev, Vistula and San Rivers going to the Soviet Union while Germany would occupy the west. Lithuania, adjacent to East Prussia, would be in the German sphere of influence, although a second secret protocol agreed in September 1939 assigned majority of Lithuania to the USSR. According to the secret protocol, Lithuania would retrieve its historical capital Vilnius, occupied during the inter-war period by Poland.

Beginning of World War II

World War II losses in the Baltic states were among the highest in Europe. Estimates of population loss stand at 25% for Estonia, 30% for Latvia, and 15% for Lithuania. War and occupation deaths have been estimated at 81,000 in Estonia, 180,000 in Latvia, and 250,000 in Lithuania. These include the Soviet deportations in 1941, the German deportations, and Holocaust victims.

• On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded its part of Poland under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.
• On September 3, Great Britain, France, Australia, New Zealand declared war on Germany
• On September 10, Canada declared war on Germany
• On September 14, the Polish submarine ORP Orzeł reached Tallinn, Estonia
• On September 17, the Soviet Union invaded its part of Poland under the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.
• On September 18, the "Orzeł incident" occurred: a Polish submarine escaped from internment in Tallinn and eventually made her way to the United Kingdom. Estonia's neutrality was questioned by the Soviet Union and Germany.

Ultimatums to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania

On September 24, 1939, warships of the Soviet Navy appeared off Estonian ports and Soviet bombers began a threatening patrol over Tallinn and the nearby countryside. The USSR then entered the airspace of all three Baltic states, flying massive intelligence gathering operations on September 25. Moscow requested that the Baltic countries allow the USSR to establish military bases and to station troops on their soil.

The government of Estonia accepted the ultimatum, signing the corresponding agreement on September 28, 1939. Latvia followed on October 5, 1939 and Lithuania shortly thereafter, on October 10, 1939. The agreements permitted the Soviet Union to establish military bases on the Baltic states' territory for the duration of the European war and station 25,000 Soviet soldiers in Estonia, 30,000 in Latvia and 20,000 in Lithuania from October, 1939.

In early 1939, the Leningrad Military District had already allocated 17 divisions, about 10% of the Soviet Army, to the Baltic states. Mobilizations followed shortly. The 8th Army was dispatched to Pskov on September 14, 1939, and the mobilized 7th Army placed under the Leningrad Military District. Invasion preparations were by now nearing completion. On September 26, the Leningrad Military District was ordered to "start concentrating troops on the Estonian-Latvian border and to finish that operation on September 29th." The order noted, "for the time of starting the attack a separate directive will be issued."

Finland invaded

Finland was offered the same opportunity to sign a pact; however, the Finns refused, and on November 30, 1939 the Soviet Union invaded Finland, launching the Winter War. The invasion was judged as illegal by the League of Nations, which expelled the Soviet Union on December 14. The war was brought to an end on March 13, 1940, when Finland and the Soviet Union signed the Moscow Peace Treaty. While Finland had resisted being conquered, it was nevertheless coerced to cede nearly all of Finnish Karelia (with Finland's industrial center, including Vyborg/Viipuri, Finland's second largest city; in total, nearly 10% of the territory), even though large parts were still held by Finland's army. Military troops and remaining civilians were hastily evacuated to areas inside the new border. 422,000 Karelians, 12% of Finland's population, lost their homes. Finland also had to cede a part of the Salla area, the Finnish part of the Kalastajansaarento (Rybachi) peninsula in the Barents Sea, and in the Gulf of Finland the islands of Suursaari, Tytärsaari, Lavansaari and Seiskari. Finally, the Hanko Peninsula was leased to the Soviet Union as a naval base for 30 years. In June 1941, hostilities between Finland and USSR resumed in the Continuation War.

Soviet invasion and occupation, 1940–1941

Soviet invasion

The Soviet troops allocated for possible military actions against the Baltic states numbered 435,000 troops, around 8,000 guns and mortars, over 3,000 tanks, over 500 armoured cars.

On June 3 1940 all Soviet military forces based in Baltic states were concentrated under the command of Aleksandr Loktionov.

On June 9 the directive 02622ss/ov was given to the Red Army's Leningrad Military District by Semyon Timoshenko to be ready by the June 12 to a) Capture the vessels of the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Navy in their bases and/or at sea; b) Capture the Estonian and Latvian commercial fleet and all other vessels; c) Prepare for an invasion and landing in Tallinn and Paldiski; d) Close the Gulf of Riga and blockade the coasts of Estonia and Latvia in Gulf of Finland and Baltic Sea; e) Prevent an evacuation of the Estonian and Latvian governments, military forces and assets; f) Provide naval support for an invasion towards Rakvere; g) Prevent the Estonian and Latvian airplanes flying either to Finland or Sweden.

On June 12, 1940 the order for a total military blockade of Estonia to the Soviet Baltic Fleet was given: according to the director of the Russian State Archive of the Naval Department Pavel Petrov (C.Phil.) referring to the records in the archive.

On June 13 at 10.40 AM the Soviet forces started to move to their positions and were ready by June 14 at 10 PM. a) 4 submarines and a number of light navy units were positioned in the Baltic Sea, to the gulfs of Riga and Finland to isolate the Baltic states by the sea. b) A navy squadron including 3 destroyer divisions were positioned to the west of Naissaar in order to support the invasion. c) The 1st marine brigade's 4 battalions on transportation ships "Sibir", "2nd Pjatiletka" and "Elton" were positioned for landing and invasion of Naissaare and Aegna; d) Transportation ship "Dnester" and destroyers Storozevoi and Silnoi were positioned with troops for the invasion of the capital Tallinn; e) the 50th battalion was positioned on ships for an invasion near Kunda. In the naval blockade participated in total 120 Soviet vessels including 1 cruiser, 7 destroyers, and 17 submarines; 219 airplanes including the 8th air-brigade with 84 bombers: DB-3 and Tupolev SB and 10th brigade with 62 airplanes.

On June 14, 1940, the Soviet military blockade of Estonia went into effect while world attention was focused on the fall of Paris to Nazi Germany. Two Soviet bombers downed the Finnish passenger airplane "Kaleva" flying from Tallinn to Helsinki carrying three diplomatic pouches from the U.S. legations in Tallinn, Riga and Helsinki. The US Foreign Service employee Henry W. Antheil, Jr. was killed in the crash.

On June 15, the USSR invaded Lithuania and Soviet troops attacked the Latvian border guards at Masļenki.

On June 16, 1940, the USSR invaded Estonia and Latvia. According to a Time magazine article published at the time of the invasions, in a matter of days around 500,000 Soviet Red Army troops occupied the three Baltic nations—just one week before the Fall of France to Nazi Germany.

Molotov accused the Baltic states of conspiracy against the Soviet Union and delivered an ultimatum to all Baltic countries for the establishment of Soviet-approved governments. Threatening invasion and accusing the three states of violating the original pacts as well as forming a conspiracy against the Soviet Union, Moscow presented ultimatums, demanding new concessions, which included the replacement of governments and allowing an unlimited number of troops to enter the three countries. Hundreds of thousands Soviet troops entered Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania across the borders. These additional Soviet military forces far outnumbered the armies of each country.

The Baltic governments had decided that, in conditions of international isolation and given the overwhelming Soviet force both on the borders and inside the countries, it was in their interests not to actively resist and to avoid bloodshed in an unwinnable war. The occupation of the Baltic states was complete with a communist coup d'état in each country, supported by the Soviet troops.

Most of the Estonian Defence Forces and the Estonian Defence League surrendered according to the orders of the Estonian Government believing that resistance was useless and were disarmed by the Red Army. Only the Estonian Single Signal Battalion stationed in Tallinn at Raua Street showed resistance to Red Army and Communist Militia called "People's Self-Defence" on 21 June 1940. As the Red Army brought in additional reinforcements supported by six armoured fighting vehicles, the battle lasted several hours until sundown. Finally the military resistance was ended with negotiations and the Single Signal Battalion surrendered and was disarmed. There were 2 dead Estonian servicemen, Aleksei Männikus and Johannes Mandre, and several wounded on the Estonian side and about 10 killed and more wounded on the Soviet side. The Soviet militia that participated in the battle was led by Nikolai Stepulov.

Soviet terror

The repressions followed with the mass deportations carried out by the Soviets. Order № 001223, "On the Procedure for carrying out the Deportation of Anti-Soviet Elements from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia", contained detailed instructions for procedures and protocols to observe in the deportation of Baltic nationals.

Led by Stalin’s close associates, the local communist supporters and those brought in from Russia, forced the presidents and governments of all three countries to resign, replacing them with provisional "people's governments" made up entirely of Communists.

In the following month, rigged parliamentary elections were conducted by local Communists loyal to the Soviet Union. Only the Communists and their allies were allowed to run The election results were completely fabricated: the Soviet press service released them early, with the result that they had already appeared in print in a London newspaper a full 24 hours before the polls closed. The result was that all three Baltic states had communist majorities in their parliaments, and in August, despite claims prior to the elections that no such action would be taken, they were all presented with motions to ask for admission to the Soviet Union. In each case, the motions passed. In due course, the Soviet Union "accepted" all three petitions and formally annexed the three countries.

Those who failed to have their passports stamped for so voting were shot in the back of the head. Public tribunals were also set up to punish "traitors to the people": those who had fallen short of the "political duty" of voting their countries into the USSR.

Immediately after the elections, NKVD units under the leadership of Ivan Serov arrested more than 15,000 "hostile elements" and members of their families. In the first year of Soviet occupation, from June 1940 to June 1941, the number confirmed executed, conscripted, or deported is estimated at a minimum of 124,467: 59,732 in Estonia, 34,250 in Latvia, and 30,485 in Lithuania. This included 8 former heads of state and 38 ministers from Estonia, 3 former heads of state and 15 ministers from Latvia, and the then president, 5 prime ministers and 24 other ministers from Lithuania. The last large-scale operation was planned for the night of 27-28 June 1941. It was postponed until after the war when the Germans invaded the USSR on 22 June 1941 - Operation Barbarossa. According to historian Robert Conquest, the selective deportations from the Baltic States represented the policy of "decapitation" of the nation by removing its political and social elite, "as was later evidently to be the motive for the Katyn massacre."

The new Soviet-installed governments in the Baltic states began to align their policies with current Soviet practices. According to the prevailing doctrine in the process, the old "bourgeois" societies were destroyed so that new socialist societies, run by loyal Soviet citizens, could be constructed in their place. The reconstituted parliaments quickly proclaimed the nationalization of large industries, transportation, banks, private housing, and commerce in general. Although land was now considered the property of the people, for the time being the regimes expropriated only those holdings comprising 30 or more hectares (about 66 acres). By creating large numbers of small, nonviable farms, the Soviet regime intended to weaken the institution of private landholding so that later collectivization, a program of agricultural consolidation that was undertaken in the USSR a decade earlier with horrifying results, could be presented as an efficient alternative. The Red Army quickly absorbed the military forces of the Baltic states. Soviet security forces such as the NKVD, imposed strict censorship and press control. In each of the new republics, churches and ecclesiastical property were nationalized, religious education and religious publications were forbidden, seminaries and monasteries were seized (often for the Red Army), and many clergymen were arrested.

Between July and August 1940, Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian envoys to the United States and the United Kingdom made official protests against Soviet occupation and annexation of their countries. The United States, in accordance with the principles of the Stimson Doctrine (Sumner Welles' Declaration of July 23, 1940), as well as most other Western countries never formally recognized the annexation, but did not directly interfere with Soviet control. The Baltic States continued their de jure existence in accordance with international law. Diplomatic and consular representations of the Baltic States continued to function between 1940 - 1991 in some Western countries (USA, Australia, Switzerland). Members of Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian diplomatic services in Western countries continued to formulate and express the official opinion of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and protected the interests of these countries and their citizens abroad between 1940–1991, i.e., until the restoration of independence of the Baltic States.

The events in the Baltic Republics were not isolated. In Finland and the Scandinavian peninsula, the great powers demanded concessions infringing their neutrality or sovereignty. Germany had pressured Sweden to grant transit rights for material and personnel transportation between Norway and ports of southern Sweden during the fighting in Norway, and achieved this after Norway's defeat. Immediately thereafter, the Soviet Union began to pressure Finland for transfer rights over land between the Hanko naval base and the Soviet border, established as a Finnish concession in the Moscow Peace Treaty, as well as for control of the Petsamo nickel mine.

In August, Finland granted transfer rights to German troops traveling between Northern Norway and ports of the Gulf of Bothnia in a diplomatic effort to improve relations with Nazi Germany that had been frosty since the mid-1930s due to ideological differences, clearly demonstrated when the Third Reich sided with the Soviet Union during the Winter War. Finland now managed to increase political contacts with Germany, which were seen as the only hope against Soviet occupation. In September, Finland and the Soviet Union came to an agreement on Hanko transitations. When the Soviet foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov, in November 1940, requested German acceptance and passive support for invasion of Finland, Hitler declined as he saw Finland as a potential ally in the upcoming invasion of the Soviet Union. The negotiations for the Petsamo mines stalled for several months, until indirect German support allowed the Finns to let those negotiations lapse.

Occupation by Nazi Germany, 1941-1944

Germany occupied the territories of Baltic states after invading the Soviet Union in 1941 during Operation Barbarossa. At the beginning the Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians considered the Germans to be their liberators from Soviet rule. In Lithuania, a revolt broke out on the first day of the war, and an independent provisional government was established. As the German armies approached Riga and Tallinn, attempts to reestablish national governments were made. It was hoped that the Germans would reestablish Baltic independence. Such political hopes soon evaporated and Baltic cooperation became less forthright or ceased altogether. A growing proportion of local population turned against the Nazi regime as Germany turned the Baltic states (except for the Memel (Klaipėda) region reclaimed by Reich in 1939) and most of Belarus into the Reichskommissariat Ostland, a colony in which the four constituent nationalities were governed by a German administration. Hinrich Lohse, a German Nazi politician, was Reichskommissar until the Soviet re-occupation.

German policy in the area was harsh, not only involving the local population in the Holocaust but also subjugating local populations. One of the Nazi plans for the colonisation of conquered territories in the East, referred to as Generalplan Ost, called for the wholesale deportation of some two thirds of the native population from territories of the Baltic states in the event of a German victory. The remaining third were either to be exterminated in situ, used as slave labour or Germanised if deemed sufficiently Aryan, while hundreds of thousands of German settlers were to be moved into the conquered territories.

Towards the end of the war, once it became clear that Germany would be defeated, many Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians joined the Germans once again. It was hoped that by engaging in such a war the Baltic countries would be able to attract Western support for the cause of independence from the USSR. In Latvia an underground nationalist Central Council of Latvia was formed on August 13, 1943. An analogous body, the Supreme Committee for the Liberation of Lithuania, emerged on November 25, 1943. On March 23, 1944, the underground National Committee of the Estonian Republic was founded. In Estonia, as a country was incorporated into the German province of Ostland. Thousands of Estonians not willing to side with the Nazis joined the Finnish army to fight against the Soviet Union. The Finnish Infantry Regiment 200 was formed out of Estonian volunteers in Finland, known colloquially as the "Finland Boys" (Estonian: soomepoisid). By January 1944, the Russian front advanced almost all the way to the former Estonian border. Narva was evacuated. Jüri Uluots, the last legitimate prime minister of the Republic of Estonia (according to the constitution of Estonia) prior to its fall to the Soviet Union in 1940 and now the head of the National Committee of the Estonian Republic, delivered a radio address that implored all able-bodied men born from 1904 through 1923 to report for military service (prior to this, Uluots had opposed Estonian mobilization). The call drew support from all across the country: 38,000 Volunteers jammed registration centers. Several thousand Estonians who had joined the Finnish army came back across the Gulf of Finland to join the newly formed Territorial Defense Force, assigned to defend Estonia against the Soviet advance. In 1943 and 1944, two divisions of Waffen SS were formed from Latvians, predominantly conscripts, to fight against the Red Army. The Battles of Narva were perceived by Estonian people as the battle for their country, a consolation for the humiliation of 1939. The lengthy German defense on the North Eastern border prevented a swift Soviet breakthrough into Estonia, which gave the underground Estonian National Committee enough time for an attempt to re-establish Estonian independence. On 1 August 1944, the Estonian National Committee pronounced itself Estonia’s highest authority, and on 18 September 1944, acting Head of the State Jüri Uluots appointed a new government led by Otto Tief. Over the radio, in English, the Estonian government declared its neutrality in the war. The government issued two editions of State Gazette. On September 21, the national forces seized the government buildings in Tallinn and ordered the German forces to leave. The Estonian flag was raised in the permanent flag mast in the tallest tower of Tallinn only to be removed by the Soviets four days later. Estonian Government in Exile served to carry the continuity of the Estonian state forward until 1992, when Heinrich Mark, the last prime minister in the duties of the Head of State, handed his credentials over to the incoming President Lennart Meri. Latvia and Lithuania continued in exile, based on the embassies in U.S. and UK

The Holocaust

Estonia

Out the approximately 4,300 Jews prior to the war, 963 were trapped in Estonia by the Nazi advance. Many Jewish people (estimated at around 500 individuals) were deported to Siberia along with other Estonians by the Soviets. During the Nazi occupation, an estimated 10,000 Jews were killed in Estonia after having been deported to camps there from elsewhere in Eastern Europe. There have been trials of 7 ethnic Estonians (Ralf Gerrets, Ain-Ervin Mere, Jaan Viik, Juhan Jüriste, Karl Linnas, Aleksander Laak and Ervin Viks) for crimes against humanity. Since the re-establishment of Estonian independence, an Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity has been established.

Latvia

The Jewish community had already suffered heavily in the Soviet mass deportations, losing much of its civic and political leadership. Proportionately, the mass deportations extracted a heavier toll on Jews than any other ethnicity. Deprived of their leadership, Jews were ill-prepared to respond to the Nazi threat. After the establishment of German authority, the process of eliminating the Jewish and Gypsy population began, with many killings taking place in Rumbula. The killings were committed by the Einsatzgruppe A, the Wehrmacht and Marines (in Liepāja), as well as by Latvian collaborators, including the 500-1,500 members of the infamous Arājs Commando (which alone killed around 26,000 Jews) and the 2,000 or more Latvian members of the SD. By the end of 1941 almost the entire Jewish population had been killed or interned in death camps. In addition, some 25,000 Jews were brought from Germany, Austria and the present-day Czech Republic, of whom around 20,000 were killed. The Holocaust claimed approximately 85,000 lives in Latvia.

Lithuania

Before the Holocaust, Lithuania was home to 160,000 Jews, and was one of the greatest centers of Jewish theology, philosophy, and learning which preceded even the times of the Gaon of Vilna. By 1941, fleeing refugees (mostly from Poland), had increased the number of Jews in the country to 250,000.

With the beginning of Operation Barbarossa in June 1941, the Lithuanian underground government, formed in 1940, briefly re-established independent Lithuania in an uprising coinciding with Germany's declaration of war on the Soviet Union, even though key members had been arrested by the Soviets only the day before, most to be later executed after show trials in the Soviet Union. Completion of the Nazi occupation of Lithuania forced the government to dissolve shortly thereafter.

In late June, detachments of the German Einsatzgruppe A under Franz Walter Stahlecker began to operate on Lithuanian territory. In some places Stahlecker's men sought to encourage pogroms (so-called "Selbstreinigungsaktionen") against the Jewish population; Stahlecker's Consolidated Report of 15 October 1941 expressed frustration over how unexpected difficulties were initially experienced in this. Nevertheless, together with voluntary Lithuanian auxiliaries, the Germans were able to start large scale mass shootings of Jews. According to German documents, between 25 and 26 June 1941, "about 1,500 Jews were eliminated by the Lithuanian partisans. Many Jewish synagogues were set on fire; on the following nights another 2,300 were killed." By November of 1941, many Jews had been killed in places like Paneriai (Ponary massacre). The surviving 40,000 Jews were concentrated in the Vilnius, Kaunas, Šiauliai, and Švenčionys ghettos, and in concentration camps, where many died of starvation or disease. In 1943, the ghettos were either destroyed by the Germans or turned into concentration camps, and 5,000 Jews were deported to the extermination camps.

During the first wave of killings in 1941–42, Romani people, alleged Communist activists, and the mentally disabled were also targeted. Additionally, large numbers of Soviet POWs perished in German captivity due to wilful neglect by the German authorities.

At the end of the war, only 10–15% of Lithuania's Jews survived, most of them by escaping to the interior of the USSR during the German invasion in 1941. The genocide rate of Jews in Lithuania, 95–97%, was the highest in Europe. This was primarily due, with few notable exceptions, to widespread Lithuanian help and cooperation with the German occupiers at all levels of society. Jews were widely considered to have supported the previous Soviet regime. Anti-Jewish attitudes therefore increased as the anti-Soviet sentiment within Lithuanian nationalism complemented already existing, traditional antisemitism.

Another factor influencing the high degree of Jewish genocide in Lithuania in contrast to other places in Europe (Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands) was the relative lack assimilation of Jews in eastern Europe.

Timeline

• August 23, 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact signed. Pact places Estonia, Latvia, Finland and part of Poland in Soviet sphere of interest.
• September 1, 1939 Nazi invasion of Poland, the start of World War II.
• September 14, 1939 Polish submarine Orzeł enters Tallinn harbour, crew interned.
• September 17, 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland.
• September 18, 1939 the Polish submarine Orzeł escapes from Tallinn, sails to England.
• September 22, 1939 Soviet Army captured Polish town of Wilno (now Vilnius).
• September 24, 1939 Soviet Union demands mutual assistance pact and the establishment of military bases in Estonia, using the Orzeł incident as the pretext.
• September 28, 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop pact amended pursuant to German-Soviet Boundary and Friendship Treaty; most of Lithuania falls into the Soviet sphere of influence.
• September 28, 1939 Estonia accepts Soviet military bases.
• October 2, 1939 Soviet Union demands mutual assistance pact and establishment of military bases in Latvia.
• October 5, 1939 Latvia accepts Soviet bases.
• October 5, 1939 Soviet Union starts negotiations with Finland for bases and territory exchanges.
• October 10, 1939 Lithuania accepts Soviet bases, Soviet Union transfers Vilnius to Lithuania.
• October 11, 1939 NKVD issues Order No. 001223 for deportations of anti-Soviet elements from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to Russia.
• October 18, 1939 First Red Army units enter Estonia.
• November 13, 1939 Finland rejects Soviet demands.
• November 30, 1939 start of Winter War against Finland.
• December 1, 1939 Terijoki Government, Soviet puppet government of Finland created in occupied Terijoki border county near Leningrad.
• January 29, 1940 Soviet Union "forgets" Terijoki government.
• March 13, 1940 Winter War ends with Moscow Peace Treaty.
• April 9, 1940 Germany invades Denmark and Norway.
• June 10, 1940 Germany occupies Norway.
• June 14, 1940 Paris falls to Germans.
• June 14, 1940 Soviet air and naval blockade of Estonia starts.
• June 14, 1940 Soviet air force shoots down Finnish passenger plane "Kaleva" flying from Tallinn to Helsinki.
• June 14, 1940 Soviet Union gives ultimatum to Lithuania to form a new government and allow free access for Red Army. The president of Lithuania, Antanas Smetona, proposes armed resistance but as he doesn't get support from government or armed forces, he decides to leave the country, so that he could not be used to legalise the occupation.
• June 15, 1940 Soviet Union occupies Lithuania. President Smetona flees through Germany first to Switzerland then to USA, 1941, where he dies on January 9, 1944, in Cleveland. Prime minister Antanas Merkys following Soviet demands tries to catch Smetona. Vladimir Dekanozov lands in Kaunas to supervise process of annexation of Lithuania.
• June 15, 1940 at 03:00 Soviet troops storm and capture Latvian border posts Masļenkos (Maslenkis) and Smaiļi.
• June 16, 1940 Similar ultimatums were given to Estonia and Latvia.
• June 16, 1940 Prime minister of Lithuania Antanas Merkys removes Antanas Smetona from the post of president and illegally assumes presidency himself.
• June 17, 1940 Estonia and Latvia gave in to the Soviet demands and are occupied. Prime minister of Lithuania Antanas Merkys assigns Justas Paleckis as new prime minister, resigns and is arrested.
• June 18, 1940 Sweden and Germany sign treaty allowing transfer of German soldiers from Norway using Swedish territory.
• June 19, 1940 A demonstration in Vilnius for support of Soviet Army.
• June 20, 1940 New Latvian government of Moscow-approved ministers is formed.
• June 21, 1940 New Estonian government containing only left-wing activists is formed. Soviet Union arrange a number of Red Army backed demonstrations in several cities.
• June 22, 1940 France surrenders to Nazi Germany.
• July 8, 1940 Sweden and Germany sign treaty allowing transfer of German war material between Norway and ports in Southern Sweden.
• July 11, 1940, Baltic Military District is created by Soviet Union at Riga, on the territories of theoretically still independent states
• July 14, 1940 – July 15, 1940 Elections in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, where non-communist candidates were disqualified, harassed and beaten.
• July 17, 1940 The acting president of Lithuania, Antanas Merkys, is imprisoned and deported to Saratov, Soviet Union. He dies March 5, 1955.
• July 21, 1940 – July 23, 1940 New Estonian assembly transforms Estonia according to Soviet style.
• July 21, 1940 New Latvian Saeima accepts wide nationalisation and Sovietization decrees.
• July 22, 1940 The president of Latvia, Kārlis Ulmanis, is arrested and deported to Russia, never returning. He died in a prison in Krasnovodsk on September 20, 1942.
• July 23, 1940 Heads of Baltic diplomatic missions in London and Washington protest against Soviet occupation and annexation of their countries.
• July 23, 1940 Sumner Welles' (US Under-Secretary of State) Declaration. United States pursues the policy of non-recognition of annexation of the Baltic States de jure. Most other Western countries maintain similar position until restoration of Baltic states' sovereignty in 1991.
• July 30, 1940 The president of Estonia, Konstantin Päts, is imprisoned by NKVD and deported to Russia where he dies in the mental hospital of Kalinin on January 18, 1956.
• August 3, 1940 Soviet Union annexes Lithuania.
• August 5, 1940 Soviet Union annexes Latvia.
• August 6, 1940 Soviet Union annexes Estonia.
• September 6, 1940 Soviet Union gets troop and material transfer rights from Finland between Hanko and Soviet border.
• September 22, 1940 Germany gets troop and material transfer rights from Finland between northern Norway and ports of Gulf of Bothnia.
• November 12, 1940 Germany refuses Soviet Union demands for right to handle Finland as they will in negotiations in Berlin.
• December 16, 1940 The Russian SFSR penal code is applied to retroactively in Estonia, applying to acts committed before 21 June 1940.
• January 10, 1941 Soviet Union and Germany make an agreement for the late resettlement of Baltic Germans from Latvia and Estonia.
• June 14, 1941 First mass deportations from Estonia (10 000), Latvia (15 000) and Lithuania (18 000) to Siberia.
• June 15, 1941 The Governor of New York, Herbert Lehman, declares 15 June to be Baltic States Day.
• June 22, 1941 Operation Barbarossa, Germany invades Soviet Union.
• 24/25 June, 1941 Rainiai Massacre of Soviet political prisoners in Lithuania
• June 25, 1941 Continuation War starts between Finland and Soviet Union.
• June 2, 1941 General mobilisation is announced in the Soviet Union.
• July 4, 1941 Mass deportations from Estonian islands.
• July 7, 1941 German forces reach Southern Estonia.
• July 9, 1941 Soviet authorities leave Tartu after executing 199 political prisoners.
• July 10, 1941 German forces reach Tartu.
• July 17, 1941 State Commissariat Ostland formed in Riga, Hinrich Lohse appointed State Commissar.
• July 21, 1941 Stalin seeks Churchill's de jure recognition of the Soviet Union's new western border, Churchill does not respond.
• August 14, 1941 Roosevelt and Churchill announce the Atlantic Charter.
• August 31, 1941 Mainland Baltics now fully occupied by German forces.
• September 20, 1941 Heinrich Himmler visits Estonia.
• November 25, 1941 US deputy Secretary of State, Sumner Welles, re-affirms the US policy in regard to non-recognition of Baltic annexation.
• December 19, 1941 Alfred Rosenberg, the German State Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories, enacts civil labour obligation for all 18 to 45 year old inhabitants of the occupied territories.
• December 1941 Within six months of German occupation, 10000 people, including 1000 Estonian Jews, are either imprisoned or executed.
• January 20, 1942 Heydrich declares at the Wannsee Conference that Estonia is "Judenfrei".
• February 25, 1942 German law comes into force in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, but are only applied to ethnic Germans.
• March 16, 1942 Goebbels writes in his diary that the Baltic people are naive to believe that the Germans will allow them to re-establish national governments.
• March 30, 1942 Himmler proposes plan to Germanise the Eastern Territories including establishing German settlements after the war.
• May 20, 1942 Molotov visits London, Great Britain refuses to recognise the legality of the new western border of the Soviet Union.

Notes and References

Footnotes

1. The forcible military occupation and subsequent annexation of the Baltic States by the Soviet Union remains to this day one of the serious unsolved issues of international law
2. For Estonia, World War II did not end, de facto, until 31 August 1994, with the final withdrawal of former Soviet troops from Estonian soil.
3. On March 26 1949, the US department of State issued a circular letter stating that the Baltic countries were still independent nations with their own diplomatic representatives and consuls.
4. From Sumner Wells' declaration of July 23, 1940, that we would not recognize the occupation. We housed the exiled Baltic diplomatic delegations. We accredited their diplomats. We flew their flags in the State Department's Hall of Flags. We never recognized in deed or word or symbol the illegal occupation of their lands.
5. The Court said: (256 N.Y.S.2d 196) " The Government of the United States has never recognized the forceful occupation of Estonia and Latvia by the Soviet Union of Socialist Republics nor does it recognize the absorption and incorporation of Latvia and Estonia into the Union of Soviet Socialist republics. The legality of the acts, laws and degrees of the puppet regimes set up in those countries by the USSR is not recognized by the United States, diplomatic or consular officers are not maintained in either Estonia or Latvia and full recognition is given to the Legations of Estonia and Latvia established and maintained here by the Governments in exile of those countries"
6. The Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939 assigned Estonia to the Soviet sphere of influence, prompting the beginning of the first Soviet occupation in 1940. After the German defeat in 1944, the second Soviet occupation started and Estonia became a Soviet republic.

References

• Brecher, Michael (1997). A Study of Crisis. University of Michigan Press. p. 596. ISBN 9780472108060. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• O'Connor, Kevin (2003). The History of the Baltic States. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 113–145. ISBN 9780313323553. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Rislakki, Jukka (2008). The Case for Latvia. Disinformation Campaigns Against a Small Nation. Rodopi. ISBN 9789042024243. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Plakans, Andrejs (2007). Experiencing Totalitarianism: The Invasion and Occupation of Latvia by the USSR and Nazi Germany 1939-1991. AuthorHouse. p. 596. ISBN 9781434315731. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Wyman, David (1996). The World Reacts to the Holocaust. JHU Press. pp. 365–381. ISBN 9780801849695. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Frucht, Richard (2005). Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture. ABC-CLIO. p. 132. ISBN 9781576078006. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Template:Harvard reference
• Petrov, Pavel (2008). Punalipuline Balti Laevastik ja Eesti 1939-1941 (in Estonian and translated from Russian). Tänapäev. ISBN 978-9985-62-631-3. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)

1. Parrott, Bruce (1995). "Reversing Soviet Military Occupation". State building and military power in Russia and the new states of Eurasia. M.E. Sharpe. pp. 112–115. ISBN 1563243601. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
2. Kavass, Igor I (1972). Baltic States. W. S. Hein. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
3. ^ The Occupation of Latvia at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia
4. "22 September 1944 from one occupation to another". Estonian Embassy in Washington. 22.09.2008. Retrieved 2009-05-01. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
5. Feldbrugge, Ferdinand (1985). Encyclopedia of Soviet law. BRILL. p. 461. ISBN 9024730759. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
6. Fried, Daniel (June 14, 2007). "U.S.-Baltic Relations: Celebrating 85 Years of Friendship" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-04-29. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
7. Lauterpacht, E. (1967). International Law Reports. Cambridge University Press. pp. 62–63. ISBN 0521463807. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
8. Motion for a resolution on the Situation in Estonia by EU
9. Dehousse, Renaud (1993). "The International Practice of the European Communities: Current Survey". European Journal of International Law. 4 (1): 141. Retrieved 2006-12-09.
10. European Parliament (January 13, 1983). "Resolution on the situation in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania". Official Journal of the European Communities. C 42/78.
11. European Court of Human Rights cases on Occupation of Baltic States
12. "Seventh session Agenda item 9" (PDF). United Nations, Human Rights Council, Mission to Estonia. 17 March 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-01.
13. Mälksoo, Lauri (2003). Illegal Annexation and State Continuity: The Case of the Incorporation of the Baltic States by the USSR. Leiden - Boston: Brill. ISBN 9041121773
14. Baltic League, TIME Magazine, June 02, 1924
15. No Philosophical Abstractions, TIME Magazine, April 16, 1934
16. The Soviet occupation and incorporation at Encyclopædia Britannica
17. ^ Text of the Nazi-Soviet Non-Aggression Pact, executed August 23, 1939
18. Christie, Kenneth, Historical Injustice and Democratic Transition in Eastern Asia and Northern Europe: Ghosts at the Table of Democracy, RoutledgeCurzon, 2002, ISBN 0700715991
19. Estonian State Commission on Examination of Policies of Repression (2005). The White Book: Losses inflicted on the Estonian nation by occupation regimes. 1940 – 1991 (PDF). Estonian Encyclopedia Publishers.
20. http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-37264/Baltic-states Baltic states, WWII losses] at Encyclopædia Britannica
21. Moscow's Week at Time Magazine on Monday, Oct. 09, 1939
22. The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J. Smith, Page 24, ISBN 0415285801
23. The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J. Smith, Page 24, ISBN-10: 0415285801
24. Tannberg. Tarvel. Documents on the Soviet Military Occupation of Estonia, Trames, 2006.
25. Baltic states :: Soviet occupation - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
26. Minus a Member at Time magazine on Monday, Dec. 25, 1939
27. Mikhail Meltyukhov Stalin's Missed Chance p. 198, available at
28. Pavel Petrov, p. 153
29. Pavel Petrov, p. 154
30. Template:Fi icon Pavel Petrov at Finnish Defence Forces home page
31. Template:Ru icon documents published from the State Archive of the Russian Navy
32. Pavel Petrov, p. 164
33. The Last Flight from Tallinn at American Foreign Service Association
34. ^ Five Years of Dates at Time magazine on Monday, Jun. 24, 1940
35. Germany Over All, TIME Magazine, June 24, 1940
36. For Lithuania see, for instance, Thomas Remeikis (1975). "The decision of the Lithuanian government to accept the Soviet ultimatum of June 14, 1940". LITUANUS, Lithuanian Quarterly journal of Arts and Sciences. 21 (No.4 - Winter 1975). Retrieved 2007-03-03. {{cite journal}}: |issue= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |quotes= ignored (help)
37. see report of Latvian Chargé d'affaires, Fricis Kociņš, regarding the talks with Soviet Foreign Commissar Molotov in I.Grava-Kreituse, I.Feldmanis, J.Goldmanis, A.Stranga. (1995). Latvijas okupācija un aneksija 1939-1940: Dokumenti un materiāli. (The Occupation and Annexation of Latvia: 1939-1940. Documents and Materials.) (in Latvian). pp. 348–350.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
38. for Estonia see, for instance, Tanel Kerikmäe, Hannes Vallikivi (2000). "State Continuity in the Light of Estonian Treaties Concluded before World War II". Juridica International (I 2000): 30–39. Retrieved 2007-03-03. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |quotes= ignored (help)
39. Cite error: The named reference autogenerated1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
40. nearly 650,000 according to Kenneth Christie, Robert Cribb (2002). Historical Injustice and Democratic Transition in Eastern Asia and Northern Europe: Ghosts at the Table of Democracy. RoutledgeCurzon. p. 83. ISBN 0700715991.
41. ^ Stephane Courtois; Werth, Nicolas; Panne, Jean-Louis; Paczkowski, Andrzej; Bartosek, Karel; Margolin, Jean-Louis & Kramer, Mark (1999). The Black Book of Communism: Crimes, Terror, Repression. Harvard University Press. ISBN 0-674-07608-7.
42. The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania p.19 ISBN-10: 0415285801
43. Estonia: Identity and Independence by Jean-Jacques Subrenat, David Cousins, Alexander Harding, Richard C. Waterhouse ISBN-10: 9042008903
44. June 14 the Estonian government surrendered without offering any military resistance; The occupation authorities began...by disarming the Estonian Army and removing the higher military comman from power Ertl, Alan (2008). Toward an Understanding of Europe. Universal-Publishers. p. 394. ISBN 1599429837. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
45. the Estonian armed forces were disarmed by the Soviet occupation in June 1940 Miljan, Toivo (2004). Historical Dictionary of Estonia. Scarecrow Press. p. 111. ISBN 0810849046. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
46. Baltic States: A Study of Their Origin and National Development, Their Seizure and Incorporation Into the U.S.S.R. W. S. Hein. p. 280. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
47. "The President of the Republic acquainted himself with the Estonian Defence Forces". Press Service of the Office of the President. December 19, 2001. Retrieved 2 January 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
48. Template:Et icon51 years from the Raua Street Battle at Estonian Defence Forces Home Page
49. 784 AE. "Riigikogu avaldus kommunistliku režiimi kuritegudest Eestis" (in Estonian). Riigikogu. Retrieved 2 January 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
50. Lohmus, Alo (10 November 2007). "Kaitseväelastest said kurja saatuse sunnil korpusepoisid" (in Estonian). Retrieved 2 January 2009. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
51. "Põlva maakonna 2005.a. lahtised meistrivõistlused mälumängus" (in Estonian). kilb.ee. 22 February 2005. Retrieved 2 January 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
52. in addition to the envoys accredited in Baltic countries, Soviet government sent the following special emissaries: to Lithuania: Deputy Commissar of Foreign Affairs Dekanozov; to Latvia: Vishinski, the representative of the Council of Ministers; to Estonia: Regional Party Leader of Leningrad Zhdanov. "Analytical list of documents, V. Friction in the Baltic States and Balkans, [[June 4]], [[1940]] – [[September 21]], [[1940]]" (html). Telegram of German Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Schulenburg) to the German Foreign Office. Retrieved 2007-03-03. {{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help)
53. ^ Attitudes of the Major Soviet Nationalities, Center for International Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1973
54. Mangulis, Visvaldis (1983). "VIII. September 1939 to June 1941". Latvia in the Wars of the 20th century. Princeton Junction: Cognition Books. ISBN 0912881003. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
55. ^ Švābe, Arvīds. The Story of Latvia. Latvian National Foundation. Stockholm. 1949.
56. Justice in The Balticat Time magazine on Monday, Aug. 19, 1940
57. Dunsdorfs, Edgars. The Baltic Dilemma. Speller & Sons, New York. 1975
58. Küng, Andres. Communism and Crimes against Humanity in the Baltic States. 1999
59. The Harvest of Sorrow: Soviet Collectivization and the Terror-Famine (1986)
60. ^ O'Connor 2003, p. 117
61. ^ O'Connor 2003, p. 118
62. see, for instance, "Concurrent Resolution of the House and Senate: H. CON. RES. 128" (PDF). July 25, 2005. Retrieved 2006-12-09. xpressing the sense of Congress that the Government of the Russian Federation should issue a clear and unambiguous statement of admission and condemnation of the illegal occupation and annexation by the Soviet Union from 1940 to 1991 of the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
63. Then acting U.S. Secretary of State, Sumner Wells described Soviet activities in the Baltic states as: "the devious process whereunder the political independence and territorial integrity of the three small Baltic republics - Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania - were to be deliberately annihilated by one of their more powerful neighbors."
64. Dehousse, Renaud (1993). "The International Practice of the European Communities: Current Survey" ( – ). European Journal of International Law. 4 (1): 141. Retrieved 2006-12-09. {{cite journal}}: External link in |format= (help)
65. European Parliament (January 13, 1983). "Resolution on the situation in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania". Official Journal of the European Communities. C 42/78. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "whereas the Soviet annexations of the three Baltic States still has not been formally recognized by most European States and the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the Vatican still adhere to the concept of the Baltic States".
66. Van Elsuwege, P. (2003). "State Continuity and its Consequences: The Case of the Baltic States". Leiden Journal of International Law. 16: 377–388. doi:10.1017/S0922156503001195.
67. Malksoo, Lauri (2005). "Illegal Annexation and State Continuity: The Case of the Incorporation of the Baltic States by the USSR". The American Journal of International Law. 99 (3): 734–736. doi:10.2307/1602324.
68. Juda, Lawrence (1975). "United States' nonrecognition of the Soviet Union's annexation of the Baltic States: Politics and law". Journal of Baltic Studies. 6 (4): 272–290.
69. [http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-37264/Baltic-states Baltic states German occupation] at Encyclopædia Britannica
70. The Baltic States: The National Self-Determination of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by Graham Smith, p. 91. ISBN 0312161921
71. Resistance! Occupied Europe and Its Defiance of Hitler by Dave Lande, p. 200. ISBN 0760307458
72. Mart Laar (2006). Sinimäed 1944: II maailmasõja lahingud Kirde-Eestis (in Estonian). Tallinn: Varrak.
73. By Royal Institute of International Affairs. Information Dept. Published 1945
74. Jewish Executions Carried Out by Einsatzgruppe A Franz Walter Stahlecker
75. The Holocaust in the Baltics
76. The Virtual Jewish History Tour - Estonia
77. Estonian International Commission for Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity
78. According to the most recent figures from the Latvian State Archives, 1,771 Latvian Jews were deported by the Soviets in June 1941, out of a total 15,424 deportees. Thus Jews made up 11% of the deportees at a time when their share of the total population of Latvia was only around 5%. See: Pelkaus, Elmārs (ed.) (2001). Aizvestie: 1941. gada 14. jūnijā (in Latvian, English, and and Russian). Rīga: Latvijas Valsts arhīvs; Nordik. ISBN 9984675556. OCLC 52264782. {{cite book}}: |first= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
79. ^ Andrew Ezergailis, The Holocaust in Latvia, 1996
80. http://motlc.learningcenter.wiesenthal.org/text/x14/xm1411.html
81. Nuremberg Document L-180, relevant excerpts from www.nizkor.org
82. Einsatzgruppen Archives.
83. Cf the Jäger Report of 1 December 1941
84. Dieckmann, Christoph (2005). Karo belaisvių ir civilių gyventojų žudynės Lietuvoje, 1941–1944 = Murders of Prisoners of War and of Civilian Population in Lithuania, 1941–1944. Totalitarinių režimų nusikaltimai Lietuvoje 2 (in Lithuanian and English). Vilnius: Margi Raštai. ISBN 9986092973. OCLC 62401555. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
85. Šarūnas Liekis. A State within a State? Jewish autonomy in Lithuania 1918–1925. Versus aureus, 2003
86. Šarūnas Liekis. Žydai: "kaimynai" ar "svetimieji"? Etninių mažumų problematika
87. Reflections on the Holocaust in Lithuania: A New Book by Alfonsas Eidintas - Senn
88. Michael L. Dockrill, B. J. C. McKercher, Diplomacy and World Power: Studies in British Foreign Policy, 1890-1950, Cambridge University Press 1996, p226

See also

• United States resolution on the 90th anniversary of the Latvian Republic
• Baltic States Investigation by the US House of Representatives
• European Court of Human Rights cases on Occupation of Baltic States
• Forest Brothers
• January Events
• Litene
• Occupations of Latvia
• Population transfer in the Soviet Union
• Rainiai massacre
• Territorial changes of the Baltic States
• Villa Lituania

Further reading

• Mälksoo, Lauri (2000). Professor Uluots, the Estonian Government in Exile and the Continuity of the Republic of Estonia in International Law. Nordic Journal of International Law 69.3, 289-316.
• Mälksoo, Lauri (2003). Illegal Annexation and State Continuity: The Case of the Incorporation of the Baltic States by the USSR. Leiden - Boston: Brill. ISBN 9041121773
• Kistler-Ritso Estonian Foundation Museum of occupations of Estonia
• The Occupation museum of Latvia
• Alfred Erich Senn What Happened in Lithuania in 1940?(PDF)
• Leonas Cerskus Crimes of Soviet Communists — Wide collection of sources and links
• Order No 001223: regarding the Procedure for carrying out the Deportation of Anti-Soviet Elements from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. — Full text, English
• GULAG 113 — Canadian film about Estonians mobilized into the Red Army 1941 and forced into labour in the GULAG
• Non-Recognition in the Courts: The Ships of the Baltic Republics by Herbert W. Briggs. In The American Journal of International Law Vol. 37, No. 4 (Oct., 1943), pp. 585-596.
• The Soviet Occupation of the Baltic States, by Irina Saburova. In Russian Review, 1955
• Crimes of Communism: Communist occupation and its end in Estonia by Mart Laar
• Soviet Aggression Against the Baltic States by (Latvian Supreme Court justice) Augusts Rumpeters — Short and thoroughly annotated dissertation on Soviet-Baltic treaties and relations. 1974. Full text
• The Steel Curtain, TIME Magazine, April 14, 1947
• The Iron Heel, TIME Magazine, December 14, 1953

v t e Soviet occupations
Europe	Austria Baltic states Estonia Latvia Lithuania Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina Bornholm Czechoslovakia Transcarpathia Finland Germany East Prussia Hungary Poland Western Ukraine Western Belorussia Sovietization Romania
Asia	Afghanistan Northern Iran Manchuria Northern half of the Korean Peninsula
Italics indicate countries occupied while the Soviet Union was a member of the Allies of World War II.

• Articles with dead external links from December 2008
• Military history of Estonia
• Military history of Finland
• Military history of Latvia
• Military history of Lithuania
• Military history of the Soviet Union
• Soviet occupations
• Germany–Soviet Union relations
• Politics of World War II
• World War II occupied territories
• Jewish Estonian history
• Jewish Latvian history
• Jewish Lithuanian history
• German occupations