“ECONOMIC FREEDOM” OF UKRAINE AND THE BALTIC COUNTRIES IN DYNAMICS (1995–2004): A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

The article defines that in order to understand its situation, each country determines the level of its own development according to certain criteria and indicators. The most reliable is the external monitoring of the country according to internationally recognized indices. Some global (mainly non-governmental) organizations, carrying out annual monitoring of many countries, form summary reports that later influence both foreign investors and the governments of the respective countries. The latter cannot ignore the relevant results of their state from legitimate world organizations. Also, the published ratings of the state affect its citizens, because the latter, in democratic states, are the bearer of sovereignty and the source of power. The indicators of a certain state published by world organizations are a kind of external summary of the activity of a particular government during the year of its activity. In essence, they are a reflection of the reforms carried out by the government in specific areas, or the lack of implementation of such measures (most often due to inaction) on the part of elected representatives. In general, this algorithm of actions looks like this: the activity of the government – the result of such activity for the state – monitoring and determination of the appropriate index of a specific country – foreign investments or the lack of such in the state and again everything goes in a circle. The article provides a comparative analysis of the main areas of research of Ukraine and the Baltic countries during the decade of their independence. The chronological period is determined from the beginning of the first monitoring of the Index of Economic Freedom by the Heritage Foundation in 1995 to the accession of the Baltic states to NATO and the EU in 2004. Also, the year 2004 is the final chronological limit for Ukraine, because it was in December of that year during the presidential elections that the Orange Revolution took place, which changed not only the head of state, but also the form of government in Ukraine, which was the result of political agreements between the main subjects of the conflict.