Progress in economic transition in the Baltic states

A Finnish economist assesses the economic transition experience of the thre e Baltic countries-Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania-the first among the succe ssor states of former Soviet Union (FSU) to liberalize and stabilize their economies, Ile investigates the extent to which progress in transition refl ects favorable initial conditions in the Baltic states vis-A-vis implementa tion of stable macroeconomic policies and ongoing structural reform. The pa per argues that the pronounced break with the past after these countries re gained their independence facilitated efforts to steer the reform process i n a more radical direction, with the prospect of EU membership providing an added incentive to continue painful structural reforms.