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Territorial changes of the Baltic states occurred when Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia gained their independence from Russia in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution of 1917. They concluded treaties with Soviet Russia, and these have been the source of political tensions after they regained their independence with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Some of the disputes remain unresolved.

The main issues are the territories claimed by or belonged to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia in the interwar period, but became attached to Russian SFSR, Byelorussian SSR and Poland after World War II.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union the issue of these lost territories was raised by the Estonian and Latvian governments. Lithuania has never officially raised the question of its borders and has border treaties with all its neighbors. Only marginal political groups use the "issue of borders" in their political rhetoric.

Actual territorial changes after World War II

This is a list of actual territorial changes that happened when Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia were incorporated into the Soviet Union and became the Baltic Soviet Socialist Republics. All the boundaries established by these changes exist up to modern days (now they are delimiting the boundaries of independent Baltic states). The modern (Russian, Belarussian or Polish) official names of locations mentioned in this section are given in the first place, while, where applicable, the official interwar names (Lithuanian, Latvian or Estonian) are given in parenthesis.

In January 1945, some territories of Estonian SSR were ceded to the Russian SFSR: the Russian–Estonian boundary in the north of Lake Peipus was moved westwards by about 12 kilometers from its interwar location (which was delimited by the Treaty of Tartu); the new boundary (which exists up until these days) there runs along Narva river. The Russian-Estonian boundary that used to run in the middle of Lake Peipus did not change, while the boundary south of Lake Peipus was also moved westwards (by about 25 kilometers). Overall, about 2000 km² of land changed hands, including Ivangorod (Jaanilinn, the then eastern suburb of Narva), the town of Pechory (Petseri), and areas in and around Izborsk (Irboska), Lavry (Laura), and Rotovo (Roodva), and the Island of Kolpino (Kulkna) in southern Lake Peipus.

In the late 1944, a territory in northeastern Latvian SSR of about 1300 square kilometers was ceded to Russian SFSR. This area includes towns of Pytalovo (until 1938 Jaunlatgale, since 1938 - Abrene) and four rural districts. All these areas during the interwar constituted the eastern part of the Abrene district of Latvia. They were added to Pskov Oblast of Russian SFSR. Russian-Latvian boundary in the southeastern Latvia did not change.

After the annexation of Lithuania into the Soviet Union in 1940, new eastern boundary of Lithuania (Lithuanian SSR) was delimited. The original interwar boundary which was delimited in 1920 by Soviet-Lithuanian Peace Treaty had not been actual eastern and southern boundary of Lithuania during most of the period because Poland annexed the Vilnius region in early 1920s. Lithuania, however, continued to regard the 1920 border as the official one, and the Soviets continued to recognise these areas as part of Lithuania rather than Poland as well. In 1940, when Lithuania was incorporated into Soviet Union, a new boundary was drawn, which left most of Vilnius region in Belarusian SSR and Nazi Germany (later after World War II those areas became part of Poland). Some areas of the Vilnius region, however, were added to Lithuanian SSR (including towns of Švenčionys, Druskininkai and the village of Dieveniškės). Main cities that were recognised by Soviets as a part of Lithuania by the 1920 treaty but were not added to Lithuanian SSR includes Hrodna (Gardinas), Lida (Lyda), Smarhon (Smurgainys), Pastavy (Pastoviai), Ašmiany (Ašmena), Brasłaŭ (Breslauja), Suwałki (Suvalkai).

Reasons for the territorial changes

Theoretically, the redistribution of lands after WWII was based on the ethnicity of local populations — some of the territories that had a clear non-Baltic majority were attached to other republics; this, however, also happened to some territories which had a clear Baltic majority (many of them were enclaves in areas without a Baltic majority). In Latvia and Estonia, territories which had not belonged to the gubernyas of Estland, Livonia, Vitebsk or Courland within the Russian Empire were detached. Unlike Soviet Socialist Republics, however, imperial gubernyas were not based on ethnicity, so this historical reasoning is not accepted by Latvians and Estonians. In Lithuania's case, the detaching did not have any historical foundation.

History of the territories after World War II

Under the Soviet rule the territories that were added to the Russian SFSR and the Byelorussian SSR were largely Russified, due to insufficient support for Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian languages, characterized by too few schools with curricula in these languages . They saw a significant migration of Russian-speaking people. In some of the territories that became part of Poland Lithuanian language schools existed and still exist however.

The territories were not returned to the Baltic states after they gained independence and remain parts of Russia, Belarus and Poland.

Lithuania immediately after independence recognised the borders established in 1940 as the borders of Lithuania and signed border agreements with Belarus and Poland. Estonia and Latvia haven't done so, although there were not any official claims over the lands detached in 1944 and 1945. It was assumed that the Russian-Latvian and Russian-Estonian border treaties would be signed in year 2005. In Latvia the opposition, primarily the organization Abrenian Union (consisting of people deported from Pytalovo and surroundings), lobbied for nationwide referendum on such treaty as they saw it as violating the constitution of Latvia (principle of territorial unity) article about this. The government ruled out a possibility of referendum, however the negotiations for border treaty were suspended by Russia after the Latvian parliament issued a declaration stating that Latvia was occupied by the Soviet Union and claiming material compensation from Russia for the period of occupation. Russian-Estonian border treaty had been actually signed in Moscow on 18 May 2005, but was not ratified by Russia - official reason for this was the fact that Estonian parliament included a text mentioning the Treaty of Tartu (the treaty under which these territories were recognised to Estonia) in the ratification document.

On 6 September 2005, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Anne Härmaste, Chargé d'Affaires ad interim of Estonia in Russia, and handed her a note containing a notice of the intention of the Russian Federation to withdraw its signature and not to become a party to the Treaty Between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Estonia on the Russian-Estonian State Border and to the Treaty Between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Estonia on the Delimitation of the Sea Areas in the Narva Estuary and Gulf of Finland.

The Treaty of Tartu is considered to be a historical document of no legal power by Russia, while in Estonia the situation is somewhat different as officially Estonia is the same state as the interwar Estonia. The official Russian stance is very negative to any such actions. President Vladimir Putin in his speech regarding these territories said that "it goes against the spirit of modern Europe" to raise issues like this one, that "Russia as well has lost many of its eternal territories during the breakup of the Soviet Union, such as Crimea" and that "They'll get the ears of the dead donkey, and not these territories".

In general, the official government policy of Latvia and Estonia is not to push the issue, but the territories' return is supported by some, usually marginal, organizations inside these countries, such as the Abrenian Union (sometimes referred to as the Association of Abrene Residents) in Latvia.

See also

• Reunification
• Irredentism
• Karelian question in Finnish politics
• Baltic Russians

External links

• This issue from a U.S.-based political analysis organization (includes information about the Pytalovo region), supports Latvian viewpoint
• Example A map comparing the interwar Estonian territory with that today (the territories detached in 1945 are striped)

• Baltic states
• Disputed territories
• History of Estonia
• Geography of Latvia
• Foreign relations of Estonia
• Latvian society
• Foreign relations of Belarus
• History of Belarus
• History of Russia
• History of Latvia
• History of Lithuania
• History of Poland