Nation-States into Nationalising States

Abstract

The widely shared perception in the Baltic societies about these countries being national homelands of respective ethno-nations is indispensable for understanding recent political developments in the region. Arguably, the outcomes of the transition from Soviet to European Union member-states have been by far and large positive, forging functioning state institutions and creating polities that are on the forefront of upholding European standards in a range of areas. Much of the debate on the region, my own past contributions included, has emphasised the importance of nation-state-building agendas that have facilitated the transformation of the Russianspeaking population of the region from a formerly dominant nationality of the Soviet Union (SU) into a group that is today a minority in nation-states of Estonians, Latvians, and Lithuanians. Although there are plenty of assessments of how the change in minority members' opportunities has impacted their social, economic and political mobilisation strategies over the decades since the Soviet demise, this article looks at the framework for these groups' participation in public life.

The (not so) surprising longevity of identity politics: contemporary challenges of the state-society compact in Central Eastern Europe

“…At the same time, the prevalence of institutions serving discrete interests of "national communities" encouraged political entrepreneurs to talk-up the social salience and relevance of identity in politics. The fact that many postcommunist states were reconstructed as polities serving designated ethnic majority groups reflected closely on the nation-focussed political ideologies in a volatile geopolitical environment (Agarin 2017). The notion of the national community under threat from global political, economic, and cultural forces sat at the heart of late socialist popular movements for emancipation from external, usually Russian, dominance.…”