    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1991, Book I)]
    [June 13, 1991]
    [Pages 652-653]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Signing the Baltic Freedom Day Proclamation
    June 13, 1991

        Welcome everybody, and please be seated. First of all, may I welcome
    Senator Riegle from Michigan and Congressmen Ritter and Hertel with us
    here today. Just delighted to have you here. And let me begin by
    thanking all of you. I'm sure it's inconvenient coming from as far away
    as some of you have, but you're welcome here, and we're delighted to
    have you.
        I had the pleasure of meeting some of you all a few months ago here
    at the White House. And I, frankly, valued and got a lot out of the
    exchange of views on the situations in the Baltic. And I pledged then
    and pledge again our desire to continue close consultation with Baltic-
    Americans from whatever State and, of course, the Congress as well on
    these important questions.
        And it's an honor to mark this occasion, this important occasion
    with so many of the men and women who champion the cause--and have for
    years--of freedom for the Baltics.
        More than 50 years have passed since the dark days of June in 1940,
    when three sovereign nations were subjugated by superior force. In those
    50 years, the courage of the Baltic peoples has shown that force can
    subjugate a nation, but it cannot rob a people of their desire to be
    free.
        Never has anyone in this room believed that the fate of the Baltic
    States was sealed by that secret pact between Hitler and Stalin. Never
    has the United States recognized the forcible incorporation of the
    Baltic States into the Soviet Union. Never in five long decades have the
    people there and all of you too, I might add, lost hope: the indomitable
    spirit that sustains the history and heritage of the Baltics.
    Generations of sons and daughters who have never known freedom have
    faith that the Baltics will one day once more be free. Today, that dream
    of self-determination, the Baltics' democratic destiny, burns fiercely
    and bright.
        In Estonia, in Lithuania, and Latvia, freely elected legislatures
    now govern in the name of the people. The popular will has expressed its
    clear and unmistakable desire for freedom. And in the face of violence
    and intimidation, the Baltic peoples and their freely elected leaders
    have steadfastly refused to answer violence with violence, preferring
    the path of peace and principle.
        The resumption of negotiations between the Soviet Government and the
    Baltic States is a positive step. And yet there's much reason to be
    concerned about recent Soviet actions against customs posts in Lithuania
    and Latvia and the ongoing Soviet occupation of broadcast facilities in
    Vilnius--acts that are incompatible with the process of peaceful change.
    Good-faith negotiations cannot go forward in an atmosphere of threat and
    intimidation.
        And this nation has taken steps to demon- strate our support
    of the Baltic nations, the people there. In February, through the
    generous support of many of the groups represented here today, the U.S.
    shipped emergency medical supplies to Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia.
    And I'm proud to say that since the response from the Baltic-American
    community has been so tremendous, we'll soon send a second shipment to
    the Baltics. These shipments are but one side of the affinity we feel as
    Americans with the

    [[Page 653]]

    aspirations of all the Baltic peoples.
        In May, I met here in the White House with the elected leaders of
    Lithuania and Estonia and Latvia--and my sixth meeting, incidentally,
    sixth meeting with the Baltic leaders in the past 12 months. And I will
    tell you today what I told them: At every opportunity, I and other
    members of our administration have made clear to President Gorbachev and
    to the other Soviet leaders this nation's firm belief in the legitimate
    aspirations of the Baltic States. The fate of freedom in the Baltics
    will remain high on our agenda.
        So, once more, keep up your good work. I think the educational
    process that all of you are engaged in as you help other Americans
    understand what's at stake here is very important to the ultimate
    solution to these problems. And I'm delighted to have you here. And may
    I say, God bless the people of the Baltics. And now I want to ask the
    Members of Congress to come up with me as I sign the proclamation
    designating June 14, 1991, Baltic Freedom Day.
        Thank you all very much.

                        Note: The President spoke at 2:20 p.m. in the
                            Roosevelt Room at the White House. In his
                            remarks, he referred to Senator Donald W.
                            Riegle, Jr.; Representatives Don Ritter and
                            Dennis M. Hertel; and President Mikhail
                            Gorbachev of the Soviet Union. The proclamation
                            is listed in Appendix E at the end of this
                            volume.