Toomas Trei, Activist PostWoodrow Wilson’s vision and objective of creating a just, post-war lasting peace was the basis of his 4 Principles, and the accompanying 14 Points. This was to be the blueprint for achieving a lasting peace. Although Wilson’s effort did not win respect in Europe, it was well-meaning and was intended to protect the sovereignty of smaller nations and peoples. The 2nd Principle stated specifically that, "Peoples and Sovereignty must not be bartered about from sovereignty to sovereignty as if they were pawns in a game.’’[1]
The vehicle for maintaining this fair and lasting peace would be the League of Nations where the rights of all nations would be guaranteed, and where international differences could be resolved peacefully. House also understood the additional opportunity that the League offered for centralized control and decision making.
While Wilson and House were at the Peace conference at Versailles in 1919, Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians were fighting for their freedom and independence on their ancestral lands against the two staggering superpowers Germany and Russia who had held them captive for centuries. The important points that Wilson wanted to foster in the post-war world League of Nations -- self-determination for all nationalities, freedom of the seas, a system of collective security -- were precious for the small, emerging new nations of Europe.
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