Post-communism, Democracy, and Illiberalism in Central and Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union explores how the downfall of communism brought about a difficult transition for Eastern and Central Europe. The collapse of communism in this region varied from one case to another and the consequences of this process can still be noticed to varying degrees today. Although most of the countries that were part of the former Soviet bloc are now members of the NATO or of the European Union, and the democratic system in these areas seems to be a solid one, the last ten years have indicated a declining trust of the citizens in political institutions and a degradation of political systems which keeps generating vocal manifestations of populism and Euroscepticism. The end of the 1990s marked the final shift towards democracy, with the accession of the first states to NATO and the beginning of accession negotiations with the European Union. The process of consolidating democracies seemed to be an irreversible one, and steps towards respect for human rights, freedom of expression, and the development of economies that functioned according to the rules of the free market gave hope for a very fast path to reduce the gaps in relation to Western democracies.
