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After World War II, Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of
influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of
the country's leaders to liberalize party rule and create "socialism
with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year
ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the collapse of Soviet
authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its freedom through a peaceful
"Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993, the country broke up into its two national components, the Czech
Republic and Slovakia. Now a member of NATO and the EU, the Czech Republic has moved
toward integration in world markets, a development that poses both
opportunities and risks. |
