For many citizens in the Baltic states, the word "Baltic" has negative connotations, reminding them of the 1939 Molotov-Ribentropp pact that sealed their destinies for the next 50 years. What unites the Baltic countries today, apart from their common history and the trauma of the Soviet occupation, is their ambition to become members of the European Union (EU) and NATO. The governments of the three countries aim to anchor their national identities and reestablish their sovereignty within a bloc of countries, which seems to be the best option for guaranteeing peace, security, and their citizens’ welfare and for providing a framework that will guide their economic and political transformation. Beyond this shared ambition and a long list of shared problems, including relations with Russia and the treatment of Russian minorities, the three Baltic states have little in common, let alone a common Baltic identity. Instead, competition and a lack of solidarity seem to dominate the relationships between the three countries.

Even though the intensity of Nordic cooperation had inspired the Baltic states to establish similar cooperative structures, namely, the Baltic Assembly and the Baltic Council of Ministers, to date considerable disagreement between the three countries has weakened this approach. At the Seventh Baltic Council Meeting, recently held in Riga, Estonia criticized Latvia about tax issues and accused both Latvia and Lithuania of being inactive in trilateral cooperation. The old Latvian-Lithuanian territorial dispute did not go unmentioned.

Estonia and Lithuania publicly protest being classified as Baltic states. Lithuania’s government considers the country to be part of Central Europe, and would prefer to develop strong links to Poland and other Visegrad countries. Estonia wants to see itself as a Nordic country, and consequently looks to the Finns, who according to Estonian Foreign Minister Toomas Hendrik Ilves, successfully "turned themselves into Scandinavians." Other senior officials in Estonia do not share this view. They contend that the Baltic states need to develop closer relations with each other to attract investment, believe that the label Baltic could promote each country as part of a wider dynamic region, and have visions of becoming one of the "three Baltic tigers." This would be easier to accomplish now than a few years ago, as Latvia and Lithuania have caught up in EU accession negotiations and now appear more likely to join the EU around the same time as front-runner Estonia. However, the closer they get to EU integration, the less relevant a group image might appear to the three states.