Evaluate the political trends in postcommunist eastern Europe.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Although the Soviet Union broke up after 1991, Yugoslavia did not. It remained a political entity that was constructed out of the remnants of states from the early twentieth century land apportionments following World War I, regardless of ethnic or religious considerations. It still had ties to communism and remained under a dictatorship after other areas in eastern Europe had gone through dramatic political transitions. In other eastern European states, the only politically experienced statesmen were communists, and so there was a rebuilding of an entirely new political system in these regions, some of which tried to affiliate themselves with Europe as a home base. Russia, Romania, and Bulgaria struggled to balance internal reforms with Western pressures for increased democracy and political transparency. Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic did fairly well at integrating changes and becoming more democratic.