Download or read book Illegal Annexation and State Continuity written by Lauri Mälksoo and published by Erik Castrén Institute Monogra. This book was released on 2003 with total page 426 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The depth and intensity of the transformation in Eastern and Central Europe in the 1980's and 1990's took most diplomats and political commentators by surprise. Needless to say, European politics now looks completely different from how it did during the stale years of the Cold War. This volume is an in-depth analysis of one aspect of the transformation - namely the Baltic States' struggle to regain the statehood they had lost in the Soviet occupation in June 1940. It analyses the claim of illegality of the Soviet occupation, arguments about possible prescription, the legal consequences of illegality as well as the restoration of the statehood of the three Baltic States after 1990. The relevant facts are clearly described and the application of the legal rules is skillfully based on arguments from precedent and legal principle. The author also discusses the question of the significance of (pure) legal status, detached from the enjoyment of rights and obligations which that status entails in law. Please also see the 2nd, revised edition of this book (2022): isbn 978-90-04-46488-9.