Even nations which have implemented serious reform programs, like the Baltic States, could make further improvements.
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The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping rates for bulk goods, has foundered.
The Stockholm archipelago consists of over 24, 000 islands and islets scattered across the Baltic Sea.
Interestingly, it appears that fiscal restraint has been very successful for the Baltic nations.
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"They are in everything from the Amazon to the Baltic seas, " said Dr Clarke.
In February the Baltic Dry Index (which measures these things) hit an alltime high.
Should other countries, such as the Baltic States, eventually be allowed in as well?
The Baltic Sea is semi-enclosed, so it takes a long time to flush out toxins.
The alliance's ability to defend the Baltic states depends almost wholly on American involvement.
She's been to Tuscany, Machu Picchu, Egypt, India, China, the Baltic, Turkey, Paris and Alaska.
If reforms fail in Georgia, the nearest post-Soviet success story will be on the Baltic.
You can drive from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean without even showing your passport.
The Baltic Ace had sailed from Zeebrugge in Belgium and was transporting Mitsubishi cars.
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They said they were there as part of joint manoeuvres with the Baltic states' armies.
The Baltic states, Hungary and Poland went through costly banking crises in the early 1990s.
The American and Polish armies staged their first serious exercises in the Baltic region this year.
The pipeline allows Siberian gas to flow directly to Germany, via twin pipelines under the Baltic Sea.
"From our preliminary results, it actually looks pretty dire for porpoises in the Baltic, " says Anna Moscrop.
The Baltic states and Poland are also working on building a new nuclear power plant in Lithuania.
Running along the bed of the Baltic Sea, it would circumvent troublesome transit countries in eastern Europe.
The largest demonstration, held last month in the Baltic city of Kaliningrad, drew as many as 10, 000 people.
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The Soviet Union relies on the Baltic ports for some of foreign trade, particularly for its energy exports.
Kaliningrad is geographically separated from mainland Russia and is wedged between Poland and Lithuania on the Baltic Sea.
The Irish are in what can only be called a depression, along with the Baltic states and Hungary.
At present, most commodities and aid destined for Tajikistan come through Russia from the Baltic ports or Vladivostok.
Why did this mutation become so common somewhere around the shores of the Baltic sea around 6, 000 years ago?
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Apart from the Baltic states, Nato on Thursday formally invited Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to join the alliance.
The gold may have come from Ireland, with lignite beads from Eastern England, and amber buttons from the Baltic.
The so-called "energy bridge" will be the second to connect the Baltic states to the wider EU electricity network.
The recent gains in the Baltic Index will likely only amplify this interest.
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