Baltic states

The Baltic states are three countries at the eastern end of the Baltic Sea. They are Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

Historically, Lithuania was traditionally allied with Poland. Sweden was powerful in the area for a time. The Russians came in, and the area was absorbed into the Russian Empire during the 1800's. Following World War I, the Baltic states gained their independence, but they were reconquered by the Soviet Union during World War II.

Following the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Baltic States again declared their independence. Today they have vibrant economies relative to the rest of Eastern Europe.