The Baltic Wars

1. THE BALTIC WARS By Susan Bataineh Summer 2018

2. Thesis Were the Baltic Wars a way to subversively control the region’s strategic, political and economic placement by the Russians

3. The First Balkan War The First Balkan War was fought between the members of the Balkan League—Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece, and Montenegro—and the Ottoman Empire. The Balkan League was formed under Russian auspices in the spring of 1912 to take Macedonia away from Turkey The first Balkan War began when Serbia and Greece with the support of Montenegro, Bulgaria formed the Balkan League and declared war against the Ottoman Empire in October of 1912. The Ottoman Empire at the time had its greatest power base in the country of Turkey. The decision of the Balkan League was prompted by Macedonia's rebellion in Ottoman-held territory. This rebellion caused waves in the region by demonstrating weakness in the Ottoman Empire. Taking advantage of this chaos, Austria-Hungary invaded Bosnia and Herzegovina removing Serbian influence from the area. This action upset Serbia and its ally Russia. Russia had been attempting to get these countries of the Balkan region to unite in opposition to the Ottoman Empire. Russia wanted this to happen so they could take Macedonia from Turkish control. When the Balkan states invaded Turkey at the heart of the Ottoman Empire, the region was already weakened from a sustained war with Italy.

4. Analysis The information presented both in the study.com material and the Encyclopedia Britannica online are both very good sources. Study.com is a for-profit college that was founded in 2003 and is based in California. Study.com is given an A+ by the Better Business Bureau and the negative feedback mainly focuses on signing up for a “free trial” and not being refunded money or money was consistently taken out after cancellation; however, Study.com did respond to these complaints to correct the issue. According to their “about us” page it claims to have hundreds of teachers which provide instruction. Due to the sheer number of instructors, I will attach the link to their profiles though they are all highly educated according to their biographies. The biographies of the instructors are at this link: https://study.com/academy/instructors.html. I have done a search for reviews and on glassdoor.com (an anonymous site which reviews employers); Study. Com received 1000 reviews, they are currently rated 4.7 out of 5.0 with 100% approval of the CEO. Their primary complaint was that they did not get enough money because there were not enough students. I would definitely consider this source academic though I am always wary of for-profit colleges as their business model requires maximum profit. That does not always translate to quality. This site is only for employees of Study.com so all material is presented by the instructors and not open. Encyclopaedia Britannica is one of the oldest English encyclopaedias and was first published in 1768 in Edinburgh, Scotland.Though, according the Better Business Bureau, it is located in Oklahoma. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., is a global educational publisher with products that promote knowledge and learning that provide timely, relevant, and trustworthy information and instructional products used in schools, universities, homes, libraries, and workplaces throughout the world. Due to its longevity as one of the leaders in any imaginable topic of study, this reference has credibility. This organization is considered an expert in the field of academic information and does not allow everyone to add information. https://study.com/academy/lesson/causes-impacts-of-the-first-second-balkan-wars.html https://www.britannica.com/topic/Balkan-Wars

5. Tito The Unifier The former Yugoslavia was a Socialist state created after German occupation in World War II and a bitter civil war. A federation of six republics, it brought together Serbs, Croats, Bosnian Muslims, Albanians, Slovenes and others under a comparatively relaxed communist regime. Tensions between these groups were successfully suppressed under the leadership of President Tito. Acting as General and Marshal of the Yugoslavian partisan movement during the war period, Josep Broz-Tito managed to successfully liberate the Slavic peoples from Nazi rule.  The Soviets and the Yugoslavian guerilla fighters shared the same anti-fascist sentiments towards the Germans and the same skepticism towards the wartime Yugoslavian government in exile. Tito’s Marxist beliefs cemented a relatively strong relationship with Stalin.  Despite certain disputes and misunderstandings, the two leaders supported each other both directly and indirectly during the war.  Thus, between the period of 1945-48 it appeared to the outer world that Tito was one of Stalin’s staunchest allies.

6. Analysis Schooworkhelper.net is another “academic” site. The site readily admits that it is “frequently updated, even by our many visitors” which definitely poses a potential for bias and misinformation. Schoolworkhelper.net is part of the St. Rosemary Educational Institution and established this site to provide a free resource to students though they do accept donations. It does, however, list the charities to which the organization provides a portion of their revenue. The site was founded in 2010 by Christopher Humphreys (BMSc,MD). It pertains to various topics including: Science (Biology, Chemistry, Earth /Space, Environment), English, Sociology, Philosophy, Business, History, Law, Art etc. Based on the statements of the website, they are experts in their respective fields. Then, there is something that really piqued my interest. When I did a BBB search on this organization, they did not exist. When I tried to do a search on St. Rosemary and the founder name, the only relevant result pointed me back to the Schoolworkhelper.net link. I then did a search on Christopher Humphreys and found that he is a critical care medicine (pulmonary) specialist in Salem, Maryland and educated at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. He was also featured in US News & World report which can be found here: https://health.usnews.com/doctors/christopher-humphreys-203208. The second reference comes from the British Broadcasting Network or BBC. The BBC was formed on 18 October 1922 by a group of leading wireless manufacturers in London. Though I have done considerable internet searching on both the BBC site and Google, I am unable to locate the writers of this piece other than, BBC News, Europe. As of this writing, I have no reason to believe their reporting is incorrect though the article does not have an author so there is potential for bias as it is written by an individual(s). I do know that the BBC is a leader in Europe for fair reporting though they do allow for personal pieces. Based on the writing, this information is strictly academic though not written by an academic agency. https://schoolworkhelper.net/tito-stalin-dispute-1948-timeline-analysis-significance/ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17632399

7. The Communist Break On June 28th, 1948 the Cominform, the principle symbol of Stalin’s control over Eastern Europe, issued a resolution that formally expelled Yugoslavia from the assembly, citing that Yugoslavia’s ruler, Josep Broz-Tito, had deviated from the correct communist line of governance.  Stalin contended that Tito was guilty of flouting the “unified communist front against imperialism” and he also accused Tito of taking the road to nationalism.

8. Analysis As stated previously, as this was from the same source, Schooworkhelper.net is another “academic” site. The site readily admits that it is “frequently updated, even by our many visitors” which definitely poses a potential for bias and misinformation. Schoolworkhelper.net is part of the St. Rosemary Educational Institution and established this site to provide a free resource to students though they do accept donations. It does, however, list the charities to which the organization provides a portion of their revenue. The site was founded in 2010 by Christopher Humphreys (BMSc,MD). It pertains to various topics including: Science (Biology, Chemistry, Earth /Space, Environment), English, Sociology, Philosophy, Business, History, Law, Art etc. Based on the statements of the website, they are experts in their respective fields. Then, there is something that really piqued my interest. When I did a BBB search on this organization, they did not exist. When I tried to do a search on St. Rosemary and the founder name, the only relevant result pointed me back to the Schoolworkhelper.net link. I then did a search on Christopher Humphreys and found that he is a critical care medicine (pulmonary) specialist in Salem, Maryland and educated at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. He was also featured in US News & World report which can be found here: https://health.usnews.com/doctors/christopher-humphreys-203208. https://schoolworkhelper.net/tito-stalin-dispute-1948-timeline-analysis-significance/

9. Cause of the Second Baltic War Communist Yugoslavia, which emerged shortly after the end of World War II, was made up of six republics: Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia. Following the death of its autocratic leader Josip Broz Tito in 1980, the Yugoslav federation found itself in crisis, with bickering between ethnic groups and surging nationalist sentiments.

10. Analysis Voice of America (VOA) and is funded by the United States government. It started in 1942 to combat Nazi propaganda. Today it is an international multimedia broadcaster which broadcast in 40 languages and this article was written by the French press though no name is credited for the article. I then tried to Google the author of the piece. I came upon another article, again, written by the VOA, which documents the first VOA Director to ever visit the Balkan region. This trip was written about one month prior to the referenced article date and can be found here: https://www.insidevoa.com/a/historic-first-visit-to-the-balkans-by-a-voa-director/4056438.html. I believe this reference source because the Director’s visit, which is the first in 75 years of the VOA, included meetings and interviews will all the leaders of each side in this multi-faceted war. I also believe the information contained in the referenced timeline was accurate as I followed these wars very closely while living in Germany. https://www.voanews.com/a/timeline-of-balkan-wars/4129662.html

11. The Yugoslav Wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of ethnic conflicts, wars of independence and insurgencies fought from 1991 in the former Yugoslavia which led to the breakup of the Yugoslav state, with its constituent republics declaring independence despite tensions between ethnic minorities in the new countries (chiefly Serbs, Croats and Muslims) being unresolved. The wars are generally considered to be a series of separate, but related, military conflicts which occurred in most of the former Yugoslav republics. Most wars ended through peace accords, involving full international recognition of new states, but with massive economic damage to the region. Initially the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) sought to preserve the unity of the whole of Yugoslavia by crushing the secessionist governments but it increasingly came under the influence of the Serbian government of Slobodan Milošević that evoked Serbian nationalist rhetoric and was willing to use the Yugoslav cause to preserve the unity of Serbs in one state. As a result, the JNA began to lose Slovenes, Croats, Kosovar Albanians, Bosniaks, and ethnic Macedonians, and effectively became a Serb army.According to the 1994 United Nations report, the Serb side did not aim to restore Yugoslavia, but to create a "Greater Serbia" from parts of Croatia and Bosnia. Other irredentist movements have also been brought into connection with the wars, such as "Greater Albania“and "Greater Croatia". According to the International Center for Transitional Justice, the Yugoslav Wars resulted in the death of 140,000 people.The Humanitarian Law Center estimates that in the conflicts in the former Yugoslav republics at least 130,000 people were killed.

12. Analysis This information comes from Wikipedia which is renown for allowing anyone to edit information so the information comes from multiple sources. This site is more of a blog so any academic information needs to be closely scrutinized. I have never read Wikipedia because of my personal bias for facts but looking at the editors of the document I am shocked. The references were an incredible 169 and that was not including the books, scientific journals and “other sources.” I was absolutely blown away at how, in a historical context, this could be used for academic purposes. Given the contributors to this particular Wikipedia, I would absolutely trust its validity. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yugoslav_Wars

13. The Fallout The Commission of Experts was established pursuant to Security Council resolution 780 (1992), to examine and analyse information in order to provide the Secretary-General with its conclusions on the evidence of grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and other violations of international humanitarian law committed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. It carried out its work between November 1992 and April 1994 and during this period held 12 sessions, conducted a series of studies and on-site investigations, established a database of all reported breaches, and submitted two interim reports. The final report was transmitted to the Security Council in December 1994. In it the Commission surveyed its work since its inception, its mandate, structure and working methods. It also gave its views on selected legal issues and made substantive findings on alleged crimes of "ethnic cleansing", genocide, rape and sexual assault.

14. Analysis This is the best example I could find of a first-account source. This source is a report by the Secretary General to the United Nations Assembly, Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egypt from 1992-1996. Boutros-Ghali served only one term as the secretary of state due to conflicts with U.S. Foreign policy leaders because they thought that he ineffectual in his position due to the conflicts in Somalia, Bosnia, Croatia and Rwanda. Boutros-Ghali died in Egypt on February 16th, 2016 at the age of 93. The author is considered an expert in his field and the opportunity for external submissions are not possible. This site, in this instance, would be academic. https://www.un.org/documents/ga/docs/50/plenary/a50-329.htm

15. Russia’s Soft Power in the Balkans For centuries, Serbia has been Russia’s main ally in the Balkans. Because of the two countries’ traditionally close historical, cultural, and religious ties—the so-called “Slavic brotherhood”—Moscow has been able to maintain a strong foothold in the region. In the past decade, Russia has augmented its presence through soft power tools like diplomacy, energy deals, and other forms of trade. Moscow’s attempt to fill the gaps and address the inconsistencies in EU policies has had a sobering effect on Western policies in the Balkans. Moscow also sought to exploit a gap in EU policy with the “South Stream” project, which would create a transit route for gas between the Western Balkans and Western European countries. This project would bring Serbia thousands of new jobs, profits from the gas transit through the country, and greater energy security. The EU, meanwhile, failed to offer any other solutions for issues such as unemployment and an energy deficit. The pipeline would have helped strengthen Russia’s geostrategic position in the Balkan region and increase Balkan countries’ dependence on Russian gas. However, in 2014, Russia suspended the project because of EU requirements that would not allow the Russian supplier Gazprom, which owns a 50 percent stake in the pipeline, to also use it exclusively. The Western Balkans is on the periphery of both Russia and Western powers’ priorities, but it is here that their rivalry clearly emerges. Russia would like to keep Serbia in its zone of influence, or alternatively as a buffer that can advocate for Moscow in the European Union. The European Union and the West need Serbia for similar reasons—to extend their sphere of influence, uphold their regional policies, and create a buffer against Russia. But from Ancient Greece to today, it has always been difficult for one power to control the Balkans. Serbia will likely continue along this path, keeping channels open across its borders to both the East and West.

16. Analysis I find this article could potentially have bias as the individual that wrote it was born in Sombor, Serbia. After research on the author, Mr. Milos Rastovic, I found that he earned his Master’s Degree in Philosophy at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA, U.S.A. and is member of many professional societies in philosophy and political sciences and Slavic studies. He has presented papers at numerous academic conferences and published articles and reviews of books in the United States, Canada, and many European countries. Given the scope of global scrutiny of his information, I do find credibility in the text as presented and shows no bias. The author is considered an expert in his field and World Policy is very select on whom they let write for this organization. The website would also be considered academic. https://worldpolicy.org/2017/07/13/russias-soft-power-in-the-balkans/

17. Conclusion I have come to find through my research that, though there is a long history between the former Yugoslavia and Russia, it is based on shared alliances, strong nationalism and economic positioning which has benefitted both countries equally.