Several leading historians of the Baltic region sought to answer this question at a symposium titled “Do the Baltic States Exist? Re-Evaluations of Europe and the Post-Cold War World” on April 17, 2013. The authors of three new books on the history of the lands making up Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia — Andrejs Plakans (Iowa State University), Andres Kasekamp (University of Tartu); and Aldis Purs (University of Washington) — participated in a panel discussion. In a dynamic discussion, the historians assessed current issues in Baltic historiography and in the relationship between states and populations. Responding to their remarks and adding her own comments on post-Baltic identities and history was Mara Lazda (Bronx Community College, The City University of New York). You can read a summary of the panel discussion in the 2013 issue of the Baltic Studies Newsletter.
The event was hosted by the European Studies Council and the Baltic Studies Program at the MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University. The Baltic Studies Program at Yale is an interdisciplinary forum that fosters study of the Baltic Sea region, particularly the lands that are today Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.