Peaceful demonstrations by the student democratic movement in China end in martial law being imposed as the world watches on TV.  Thousands killed.

Parliament ends Communist domination in Czechoslovakia.

Deng Xioping resigns from  China's leadership.

U.S. troops invade Panama to capture Manuel Noriega.

Soviet communists give up sole power.

Gen. Noriega surrenders in Panama.

Deadly riots in Kosovo result in Yugoslav Army intervention.

Left-wing Sandinistas lose in elections in Nicaragua.

Multi-party system adopted in Bosnia-Herzegovina republic.

Lithuania declares independence from the USSR which responds with economic blockade.

HDZ proposes that Constitution in Croatia be amended to allow for a confederated system of sovereign states.

The Slovenian legislature declares Slovenia a sovereign state.

The League of Communists of Serbia and the Socialist Alliance of the Working People of Serbia mere to become the Socialist Party of Serbia. Slobodan Milosevic is elected President by the delegates in a landslide.

Croatia adopts the proposed amendments to the Constitution which replace the flag and declare that Croatia would no longer be a socialist republic.

The Bosnian legislature adopts  constitutional amendments declaring Bosnia-Herzegovina a democratic state with equality for all its ethnic groups.

Syrian troops enter the Lebanese Civil War.

Bosnia-Herzegovina holds its first multi-party elections.  Nationalistic parties win.

The new Croatian Constitution recognizes ethnic Serbs as a minority, but does not grant rights to minority groups.

In a plebiscite in Slovenia, nearly 90% of voters favor sovereignty.

Soviet forces try to stop the independence movement in Lithuania. 

Slovenia announces that it will start legislative procedures towards independence.

The Persian Gulf War ends in ceasefire with Iraqi forces pulling back from Kuwait.

Los Angeles Police are videotaped use force against Rodney King, a suspect allegedly resisting arrest.

Krajina Serbs declare autonomy from Croatia and are recognized by Milosevic.  Armed conflict underway between ethnic Croats and ethnic Serbs in Croatia.

Serbia assumes authority over the dissolved Kosovo legislature.

The European Community, in response to the increased tensions in Yugoslavia, declares that it supports diplomacy and political dialogue over force and promotes unity and democracy in Yugoslavia.

The UN creates a "safe haven" for Kurds in Iraq.

Europe ends sanctions on South Africa.

At a meeting of the six Presidents of Yugoslav republics, they agree that each republic should hold referendums on confederation or federation.

Referendum on separation of Croatia held.   Over 90% votes for sovereignty and independence.  Krajina Serbs boycott the referendum.

South Africa repeals apartheid.

Albanian communists resign.

Slovenia and Croatia declare independence from Yugoslavia.

Krajina, a region with a large number of ethnic Serbs, declares independence from Croatia and has backing of Yugoslav People's Army.

Yugoslav army tanks and helicopters attack Slovenia. After the Slovenian militia captures 2,000 soldiers, it trades their release for the right to control its own borders.   The war in Slovenia lasts a total of a week.

Fighting between Serbian and Croatian militias is more severe, especially in Krajina, Baraja, and Slavonia.

The U.S. states support for unity and democracy of Yugoslavia and sovereignty determined through mutual agreement rather than unilateral secession.

In light of the situation, the European Community freezes economic assistance to Yugoslavia.

China accepts nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

The Baltic Republics declare themselves independent from the USSR.

Meanwhile, Yugoslav tanks and aircraft drive refugees from Vukovar and Dubrovnik.  Fighting escalates.

First international monitors arrive in Croatia.

Chechnya, under the leadership of Dzhokhar Dudayev, declares independence from the Soviet Union.

Haitian uprising against the President.  U.S. cuts off assistance.

The European Community hosts a Conference on Yugoslavia in the Hague.  Ceasefire between Serbia and Croatia signed.  In spite of this, fighting continues.

In a referendum in Kosovo, ethnic Albanians vote for independence.

The Cambodian government signs international peace treaty with rebel groups; UN will oversee transition.

President of Croatia Franjo Tudjman and President of Serbia Slobodan Milosevic again sign a cease-fire.  However Yugoslav Army remains in Croatia.

The Conference on Yugoslavia reconvenes in the Hague. Co-Chairman Lord Carrington submits a proposal which supports independence and recognition for former republics and protection of rights of ethnic minorities.  Serbia refuses to agree to the proposal even after changes are made, on the grounds that it does not support the unity of Yugoslavia.

Albania's parliament recognizes Kosovo as an independent republic.

The Bosnian Muslim government declares itself a sovereign state.

Terry Waite, a British cleric who had negotiated release of hostages in Lebanon until being taken hostage himself, is released after four years of captivity.

Boutros Boutros Ghali becomes the first Arab and African to be nominated to be UN Secretary General.

Macedonian legislature proposes new Constitution declaring Macedonia sovereign and independent.

Algeria holds its first free parliamentary elections, with most successes from fundamentalist Islamic parties.

Mikhail Gorbachev resigns and the Soviet Union ceases to exist.   Boris Yeltsin becomes the dominant figure in the transitional Commonwealth of Independent States, a confederation of most of the former Soviet Republics.

European Community decides not to apply economic sanctions to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Slovenia or Croatia.

UN Special Envoy Vance's peace plan would provide UN peacekeepers to Eastern Slavonia, Western Slavonia, and Krajina following a ceasefire and withdrawal of troops and disbanding of irregulars, but offers no specific solutions to the ethnic conflict.

The Bosnian Serbs  adopt a Resolution to form the Serbian Republic (Republika Srpska) of Bosnia- Herzegovina within the framework of Yugoslavia.

Ethnic Serbs in Krajina, Slavonia, Baranja and West Srem declare their own republic.

27 more countries and European Union recognize Croatia as an independent sovereign state.

Temporary ceasefire in Croatia.

The fighting in Croatia expands to Bosnia.

Bosnian Serb forces start to drive Muslims out of small villages; many of these refugees flee to the larger Bosnian cities of Zepa, Srebrenica, Tuzla and Sarajevo.

Siege of Sarajevo begins.

International sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro, the two remaining republics of Yugoslavia.

Ethnic Albanian writer Ibrahim Rugova is elected president of Kosovo in an election unsanctioned by the   Yugoslav government.

First international reports of   "ethnic cleansing," rapes, concentration camps, and mass executions in Bosnia.

The UN imposes a no-fly zone over Bosnia.

Czechoslovakia agrees to amicable split of the country into Czech and Slovak Republics.

Geneva Peace Talks underway.  Under discussion is the    Vance-Owen Plan, which would partition Bosnia and provide for a rotating presidency, but require no Serb troop withdrawals.

Some cooperation between Croatia and the Bosnian Serbs.

UN declares "safe areas" in Sarajevo, Tuzla, Bihac, Zepa, Gorazde, and  Srebrenica.

China breaks nuclear test ban.

Tenth anniversary of Sarajevo Winter Olympics overshadowed by Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan figure skating controversy.

Krajina Serbs sign a ceasefire and zones of separation between Serbs and Croats.

South Africa holds its first multi-racial elections.  Nelson Mandela wins Presidency.

Protestant militia groups declare ceasefire in Northern Ireland.

Bombing of federal office building in Oklahoma City becomes most deadly act of terrorism on U.S. land.

2,000 die in massacre in Rwanda.

Krajina Serbs shell Zagreb.

Fighting escalates in Bosnia.

Croatia expels ethnic Serbs from Krajina.

Nearly 70 ethnic Albanians in Kosovo are sentenced to jail for setting up a parallel police force.

Serbian authorities settle several hundred Croatian Serb refugees in Kosovo.

Israel agrees to transfer West Bank to Palestinians.

Nigeria hangs ethnic minority activists.

Yassir Arafat is elected leader in the first Palestinian elections.

France ends nuclear tests.

A Palestinian suicide bomber blows up a bus in Jerusalem.

Chechen rebels blow up a big gas pipeline in southern Chechnya.

Cuban war planes shoot down two unarmed private planes flown by a refugee group in Florida.

Ethnic fighting between Hutus and Tutsis intensifies in Burundi, forcing over 50,000 to flee from their homes.

Civil war resumes in Liberia.

Chechen leader Dudayev, is killed in a Russian air strike.

Unabomber arrested in U.S.

Yugoslavia and Macedonia establish diplomatic relations.

The international community pledges to raise $1.2 billion for the reconstruction of Bosnia. Bosnian Serbs refuse to attend as part of a delegation with Muslims and Croats.

South Africa approves a National Constitution that guarantees equal rights for all races.

Hutu refugees from Rwanda attack 800 Zairian Tutsis who had taken refuge in a church in eastern Zaire.

The Chechens and Russians agree to a peace accord.

In Belgrade, workers protest economic conditions in Serbia, as the Milosevic government insists that IMF funds must be linked to recognition of Serbia as the only successor of the former Yugoslavia.

Radovan Karadzic officially steps aside as the leader of the Bosnian Serbs.   Biljana Plavsic becomes the new leader.

UN officials confirm the statement of Bosnian Prime Minister Muratovic that Bosnian Serbs are expelling Muslims from the Teslic area in central Bosnia.

In Indonesia fighting breaks out over support for opposition leader Megawati Sukarnoputri.

The Bosnian Federation  approves the merger of the Muslim and Croat armies.

Mass graves discovered at Srebrenica.

Taliban fundamentalists capture Kabul, Afghanistan's capital.

Kofi Annan becomes UN Secretary-General.

The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a banned ethnic Albanian militia group suspected in car bombing of Serb rector of Pristina University.  KLA leader killed by police.

Princess Diana dies in car crash.

Iraq blocks UN weapon inspections.

Ethnic Albanians vote for president and parliament, but elections are declared illegals by Serbia.

U.S. and Western Europe set new sanctions against Serbia, including freezing of assets abroad.

UN calls for a ceasefire in Kosovo.

NATO threatens airstrikes in spite of Russian protests. 

Serbian forces appear to pull back, NATO halts threat, and UN authorizes monitors to ensure violence has ended.

U.S. president impeached for lying about sex scandal.

International monitors discover the bodies of at least 45 Albanians in Racak in southern Kosovo. UN war crimes prosecutor Louise Arbour is refused entry to Kosovo to probe killings.

NATO once again threatens airstrikes.

International monitors withdraw from Kosovo.

In spite of last-minute diplomatic efforts to seek a peaceful solution, Serbia continues to reject any talk of NATO peacekeepers in Kosovo.

NATO launches air war against Yugoslav military targets.

Russia suspends cooperation with NATO.  Yugoslavia breaks off diplomatic relations with United States, France, Germany and Britain.

Hundreds of thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees flee to Albania, Macedonia, and Montenegro.

NATO bombs hit a passenger train south of Belgrade and a convoy of ethnic Albanian refugees.

Yugoslavia rules out a foreign military force in Kosovo but says it is willing to discuss a civilian presence.

Yugoslavia breaks diplomatic relations with Albania.

Yugoslav and Kosovar Albanian troops exchange fire at the border.

NATO missiles hit the headquarters of Milosevic's Serbian Socialist Party, his private residence, Serbian State Television, and the Defense Ministry.

NATO begins intensive bombing of Yugoslav electricity grid, disrupting power and water.

War Crimes Tribunal indicts President Milosevic for crimes against humanity.

Serb forces start withdrawal from Kosovo. NATO halts the air campaign.

Russian peacekeepers from Bosnia enter Kosovo and take control of Pristina airport.

Ethnic Albanian refugees start to return home.  Kosovar Serbs head north.

The NATO air campaign officially over, as Serb withdrawal from Kosovo completed.

The KLA promises to disarm.

Muslims in Dagestan declare independence from Russia.

East Timor votes for independence from Indonesia.

U.S. rejects nuclear test ban treaty.

The first case tried in the War Crimes Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia ends.   Following the appeals process, Bosnian Serb Dusan Tadic is sentenced to 20 years for crimes against Muslim and Croat prisoners.

The Irish Republican Army refuses to disarm and the British government dissolves Northern Ireland's independent government.

New Croatian government promises to support internal democratic reforms and the independence of Bosnia, rather than foment a separatist movement among the Bosnian Croats.

Serbian Defense Minister assassinated.

The Israeli government backs a plan to withdraw troops from Lebanon and reduce troops in the West Bank.  The Supreme Court rules that land may not be allocated by religion or ethnicity.

Vladimir Putin, Russia's new President, states that Russia might consider joining NATO as an equal power and supports ratification of  START II and other nuclear arms reduction measures.

NATO warplanes hit targets in Iraq.

Pope John Paul II makes historic visit to the Holy Lands and asks for God's forgiveness against sins committed by Catholics in the past.

40 years of Socialist rule end in Senegal.

Taiwan establishes limited trade with the PRC.

Several Bosnian Serbs are arrested by NATO troops and charged with war crimes between 1992-94 in Bosnia. Meanwhile, the new Croatian government hands over to the War Crimes Tribunal a Bosnian Croat who had commanded irregular forces against Bosnian Muslim from 1993-94.

Street battles in Mitrovica, Kosovo result in deaths of civilians and French peacekeepers.

Zimbabwe approves legislation for the government to seize white-owned land without compensation.  Squatters occupy many of the farms and kill some of the owners.

Thousands descend on Washington DC to protest foreign aid policies of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

In Peruvian elections, President Fujimori defeats opposition leader Alejando Toledo, but does not receive a majority.  A second round of voting is scheduled.  Vote fraud is suspected.

Russian Duma passes START II.

Rwanda's first Tutsi President is elected.

Israel releases 13 Lebanese prisoners.

Fighting in Sri Lanka intensifies.

A Milosevic ally and head of Yugoslav Airlines is shot to death in Serbia.

Congo agrees to UN observer force to monitor ceasefire.

Indonesian government and separatists in Aceh agree to ceasefire.

Israeli pullout from southern Lebanon is threatened when Lebanese guerillas sire rockets into northern Israel.  Israeli air strikes against Lebanon begin.  Both sides later agree to ceasefire and Israel withdraws forces after 22 years.

Forest fires in western United States threaten Los Alamos nuclear lab.

Russia's largest private media company is raided by police.

Border war resumes between Eritrea and Ethiopia.  Fighting continues through declared ceasefires and peace talks.

Amidst vote fraud allegations, Toledo pulls out of the second round of elections.  Fujimori declares victory.

An appeals court in Chile declares that Pinochet cannot claim immunity from prosecution.

The Greek government removes religious affiliation from citizen identity cards.

Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Slovenia are among nine nations petitioning for NATO entry by 2002.

A Serbian court convicts nearly 150 ethnic Albanians on terrorism charges stemming from the 1999 NATO bombings.

Yugoslav President Milosevic closes universities early.

The Security Advisor to the Montenegrin President is shot dead.

The Presidents of North and South Korea meet -- the first time two leaders of the separate Koreas have done so.  Among agreements signed is one to allow cross-border families to visit each other.

Germany plans to end the use of atomic energy by the year 2020.

Elian Gonzalez and his father return to Cuba.

Serb opposition figure Vuk Draskovic survives an assassination attempt in Montenegro.

Montenegro informs the UN that it does not wish to be represented by Yugoslavia.

Sectarian fighting between Christians and Muslims intensifies in Indonesia's Spice Islands.

The United States and Vietnam resume trade.

Russian President Putin increases presidential powers over the legislature and provincial governments.

A Russian nuclear submarine sinks during naval exercises possibly as a result from a torpedo explosion.  Nearly 120 sailors die.

Alija Izetbegovic, citing poor health, steps down from the Bosnian Joint Presidency.  As the last of the wartime leaders, his decision marks a new era in Balkan leadership.

Russia promises to destroy 40,000 tons of lethal weapons it has stockpiled.

The United States President Bush orders a review of nuclear arms, but vows to invest in new weapons technology.

U.S. submarine sinks Japanese fishing ship in Hawaii.

In a separate case, the Tribunal reaches a conviction in a case where rape is seen as a motivated act of war.  This is the first in international law.

The Yugoslav Parliament passes an amnesty law for 650 ethnic Albanians held in jails since the 1999 Kosovo War.

Russia resumes arms sales to Iran.

U.S. abandons international global warming treaty over Kyoto Protocol, which calls on nations to reduce gas emissions.

Due to energy crisis, the U.S. state of California resorts to rolling blackouts.

An American missionary and her infant daughter die after their plane is shot down by Peruvian military.

Israel attacks Lebanon and temporarily reoccupies part of Gaza.

In the U.S. midwestern city of Cincinnati, race riots follow a police shooting.

Millionaire Dennis Tito becomes the first "tourist in space," paying Russia $20 million to visit the International Space Station.

Survivors of Srebrenica storm U.N. Headquarters in Sarajevo following reports that a Bosnian Muslim Commander who defended the town would be charged with war crimes against Bosnian Serbs.

In the U.S. state of Alabama, a jury finds a Klansman guilty of murder in the deaths of 4 girls in a Birmingham church bombing 38 years after the crime was committed.

A soccer stampede in Ghana leaves hundreds dead.

Peru elects a new President, Alejandro Toledo.  Former Spy Chief is captured

European Union expansion is rejected by voters in EU member country Ireland.

A U.S. Senator gives up Republican party membership to become an independent, which results in the Democrats taking over the majority in the Senate.

Violence in the Macedonian capital Skopje over NATO troops escorting ethnic Albanians from the country.

Russian troops raid two villages in Chechyna and are rebuked by Russian general.

India and Pakistan end talks on Kashmir.

Bosnian Serb general Radislav Krstic found guilty of genocide for role in July 1995 Srebrenica execution of 7,000 Muslim men and boys.

Macedonian government sign peace agreement with Albanian rebels. British-led NATO force enters country to disarm guerrillas.

U.S. responds by bombing Afghanistan, where Osama Bin-Laden is reputed to be hiding.

The Euro debuts as common hard  currency in all European Union countries except the United Kingdom.

U.S. reporter Daniel Pearl is kidnapped in Pakistan.  His killing is videotaped.

Suicide bombings in Israel intensify.

Halle Berry becomes first black actress to win an Academy Award as Best Actress.

East Timor officially an independent country.

Russia-NATO Council formed, giving Russia a voice in NATO on some issues.

Palestinian militants who had been holed up in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem are permitted to leave the church and exiled to Europe.

Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her 50th year on the thrown of the United Kingdom.

The Vice President of Afghanistan is assassinated.

The Organization of African Unity is replaced by the African Union.

The Irish Republican Army issues condolences to the families of those killed in internecine fighting.

Rwanda and Congo sign peace accord to end four years of war.

The United States extends its peacekeeping mission in Bosnia amidst negotiations over Americans being granted immunity from prosecution by International Criminal Court.

Slobodan Milosevic's failing health due to heart disease slows down his trial in the Hague.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leads the left-wing Workers Party to victory in Brazil.

Sniper attacks in the Washington suburbs kill 10.  John Allen Muhammad and John Lee Malvo arrested in the random shootings.

U.S. Congress votes to support President Bush's proposed force in Iraq.

Chechen rebels take hostages in Moscow theater.  Government forces storm theater, killing 116 hostages and the rebels.

Space Shuttle Columbia explodes during return to earth, killing its seven astronauts.

Plavsic sentenced to 11 years in jail by the War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague.

The U.S., UK, and Spain choose to invade Iraq in spite of failing to get UN support for resolution authorizing invasion.

Outbreak of deadly Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) begins in China.

Elizabeth Smart, a Utah teenager, was found after being kidnapped for nine months.

South African government agrees to pay reparations to families of Apartheid victims.

North Korea admits for the first time that it has a nuclear bomb.

"Road Map" peace plan proposed for the Middle East, including proposed creation of a Palestinian state.
.

Slovenia and nine others countries meet in Greece to sign a treaty to join the European Union.

Air travel resumes between India and Pakistan.

Martial law in the separatist region of Aceh in Indonesia.

Opposition leader San Suu Kyi taken into custody by Burmese government.

Czechs and Poles vote to join the European Union while the UK decides not to join the Euro currency.

Israel begins withdrawal of troops from Gaza.

Rebellion against the government of Charles Taylor in Liberia.  U.S. deploys Marines to region.

Libya admits responsibility in 1988 bombing of flight over Lockerbie Scotland and agrees to pay reparations to families of the victims.

Power blackout hits Canada and U.S., including major metropolitan areas of New York and Detroit.

11,000 die in France as a result of a European heatwave.

Movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger becomes the new governor of the U.S. state of California.

Washington sniper suspect John Muhammad found guilty and sentenced to death.

Media deemed a provacateur of 1994 Rwandan massacres as three media officials found guilty of genocide.

Zimbabwe leaves British Commonwealth.

Washington sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.

SDSS (the main ethnic Serb political party in Croatia) agrees to support HDZ positions in parliament in exchange for concessions on rights for Croatia's Serbian minority, including helping refugees to return to or make claims on their properties.

Bosnian Serb General Stanislav Gaic is convicted of war crimes in the Hague for his part in commanding the siege of Sarajevo from 1992-1994.

Bosnian Serb commander jailed for 27 years for role in the 1995 massacre in Srebrenica.

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty ends its broadcasts in Croatian (and six other Eastern European languages).

Last Updated: October 31, 2004