The Hidden Nations tells one of the momen-

tons stories of the late twentieth century--

the resurgence of nationalism and massive

protests among the silenced peoples and

republics of the Soviet Union. No less than

the existence of the USSR is at stake.

Nadia Diuk and Adrian Karamycky trav-

eled the vast reaches of the Soviet Union to

document and talk firsthand to the political

leaders who are challenging the seventy-

three-year-old empire. They have produced a

probing, chilling report that explains how

the previously unthinkable--the reemer-

gence of the non-Russian Soviet nations onto

the political map- has actually happened.

From the acquisition of the Tatar region in

the sixteenth century to the 1939 Hitler-

Stalin pact for the Baltic region, Russia sys-

tematically acquired territories and peoples~

Moscow s brutally repressive policies caused "

many observers to feel that totalitarianism

had stamped out these peoples traditions,

values, and bonds to the past. This enlighten-

ing and powerful study shows how and why

today the republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan,

the Ukraine, the Baltics, and Central Asia are

working to undo the past.

Lithuanians, Latvians, Georgians, Uzbeks,

Ukrainians, Estonians--who are these mil-

lions rising to assert their rights? Do their

movements pose a threat to the reform pro-

cess initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev? What

chance do these non-Russian, hidden

nations have to become independent, auton-

omous states? What should the West do to

support these democratic movements? Can