Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940

See also: Soviet occupation of the Baltic states (1940)
Red Army BT-7 tank and ZIS-5 truck in Riga (1940)
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The Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940[1][2][3] refers to the military occupation of the Republic of Latvia by the Soviet Union under the provisions of the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with Nazi Germany and its Secret Additional Protocol signed in August 1939.[4] The occupation took place according to the European Court of Human Rights,[5] the Government of Latvia,[6] the United States Department of State,[7] and the European Union.[8][9][10] In 1989, the USSR also condemned the 1939 secret protocol between Nazi Germany and herself that had led to the invasion and occupation of the three Baltic countries, including Latvia.

In July 1989, the country began the process of restoring their independence, and after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Latvia's sovereignty was fully restored in 1991. On 22 August 1996, the Latvian parliament adopted a declaration which stated that the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940 was a military occupation and an illegal incorporation.[11]

  1. ^ The World Book Encyclopedia ISBN 0-7166-0103-6
  2. ^ "Soviet occupation of the Baltic States" at Encyclopædia Britannica
  3. ^ The History of the Baltic States by Kevin O'Connor ISBN 0-313-32355-0
  4. ^ "The Soviet occupation and incorporation of Latvia" at Encyclopædia Britannica
  5. ^ European Court of Human Rights cases on Occupation of Baltic States
  6. ^ The Occupation of Latvia Archived 2007-11-23 at the Wayback Machine at Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia
  7. ^ "U.S.-Baltic Relations: Celebrating 85 Years of Friendship" at state.gov
  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" (PDF). European Journal of International Law. 4 (1): 141. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.ejil.a035821. Retrieved 2011-01-28.
  10. ^ European Parliament (13 January 1983). "Resolution on the situation in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania". Official Journal of the European Communities. C 42/78.
  11. ^ CASE OF KONONOV v. LATVIA European Court of Human Rights. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2013.