THE EASTERN EUROPE Can we define it?

Geography, demography and religion From the Baltics in north west to tha Balkans in the sout east From Sibir in the north east to Germany, Austria and Italy in the south west The Slavs people, the south Slavs (Balkans) and the Baltics, Jews The Ortodox church from the old Byzantine Empire The eastern Catholic church The Jewish church

The countries Poland The Czech Republic Slovakia Hungary Estonia Lartvia Lithuania Belarus Ukraina Russia Moldova Romania Bulgaria Slovenia Croatia Bosnia and Herzegovina Serbia Montenegro Kosovo Albania Macedonia

Great power’s influance Russia Tha Habsburgs (Austria- Hungary) Prussia - Germany (late years) The Ottoman Empire France (Napoleon)

Economy and freedom A long lastin fuedal system in the east Unfree peasants without their own farms Huge farms – few and big land owners Ineffective agriculturing Late industrialization Unfree economy – no market economy Socialist economy – communism – late years

Wars and disorder Many outside inviders Civil wars The two world wars Ethnic cleansing and other «cleansings» Terror

The Soviet Bloc Many countries were forced into the communist bloc dominated by Soviet Union (Russia) The Iron Curtain devided Europe physical Opression, terror and constricted freedom Failed economic development

Freedom, but what about democracy? !989 – The revolutions and freedom from the communism The confusing 90-th Part of a Common European comunety – integration - EU and NATO And the future? THAT IS YOU…………….