After the Invasion: The Soviet Army and Czech Society 1968-1991 (Václav Havel Series)

Analyzes the historical significance of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. This book addresses different aspects of the Soviet army’s twenty-year presence in Czechoslovakia between 1968 and 1991.It explores the circumstances of the Soviet settling in the country, immediately related to the invasion of the Warsaw Pact armies in August 1968; its active interference in the political developments in the early stage of the “normalization” era; and the universal support provided by the normalization era regime.It examines the darker side of this support when the constant favoring of Soviet interests-often to the detriment of the local population and the environment-went hand in hand with the resignation of the Czechoslovak state to lawfulness and the execution of effective administration on its territory. Based on extensive local and national primary sources, the volume describes the often problematic coexistence of the Soviet garrisons and local inhabitants, who did not have sufficient