Estonia gained independence in 1918, in the
aftermath of World War I. During
World War II, on 16-17 June 1940, Estonia was
invaded and occupied by the Soviet army, and its territory was subsequently annexed by the
Stalinist Soviet Union in August 1940. The
majority of Western nations refused to recognize the incorporation of Estonia
de jure by the Soviet Union and only recognized the government of the Estonian SSR
de facto or not at all. Such countries recognized Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian diplomats and consuls who still functioned in the name of their former governments. These diplomats persisted in this anomalous situation until the ultimate restoration of Baltic independence. In the 1980s, new policies of
perestroika and
glasnost were introduced and
political repression in the Soviet Union came to an end. As a result, during the
1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt on 20 August 1991, Estonia
restored full independence, almost three years after the Estonian Sovereignty Declaration was made. On 6 September 1991, the Soviet Union recognized the independence of Estonia, and the country became a member of the
United Nations on 17 September 1991. After more than three years of negotiations, on 31 August 1994, the last remaining armed forces of
Russia withdrew from Estonia. ==The Declaration==