A collection of essays on ethnic conflict in the region, most of which do not support the notion that conflicts in Central Europe and the NIS are ethnically based or that ethnicity provides the key to their outbreak or resolution, but rather social, political, and economic conflicts are spawned by imperial collapse and far-reaching socioeconomic crises. Underlying themes include the motivating power of claims to equality and human dignity, and the struggle for control over political and economic resources. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR