Serbia former Yugoslavia. How to find the now defunct country of Yugoslavia on the map

An independent state of the South Slavic peoples was formed in Europe in 1918. Since 1929 it began to be called Yugoslavia, in 1945, after the liberation of the country from fascist occupation, it was proclaimed the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, and in 1963 it received the name Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY). It included the union republics of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Montenegro. In addition, two autonomous provinces were identified as part of Serbia - Vojvodina (with a significant Hungarian population) and Kosovo and Metohija (with a predominance of the Albanian population).

Despite the kinship of all South Slavic peoples, significant religious and ethnolinguistic differences remained between them. Thus, Serbs, Montenegrins and Macedonians profess Orthodox religion, Croats and Slovenes – Catholic, and Albanians and Muslim Slavs – Islam. Serbs, Croats, Montenegrins and Muslim Slavs speak Serbo-Croatian, Slovenes speak Slovenian, and Macedonians speak Macedonian. In the SFRY, two scripts were used - based on the Cyrillic alphabet (Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia) and the Latin alphabet (Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina). It is important to emphasize that to these ethnolinguistic features were added very significant differences of a socio-economic nature, primarily between the more developed Croatia and Slovenia and the less developed other parts of the SFRY, which aggravated many social contradictions. For example, Orthodox and Catholics believed that one of the main reasons for the country's high unemployment rate was the high population growth in its Muslim areas.

For the time being, the authorities of the SFRY managed to prevent extreme manifestations of nationalism and separatism. However, in 1991–1992. ethnic intolerance, aggravated by the fact that many borders between the union republics were initially drawn without due consideration of the national-ethnic composition of the population, acquired a very large scale, and many political parties began to speak out under openly nationalist slogans. As a result, it was during these years that the SFRY collapsed: in 1991, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Macedonia separated from it, and in 1992, a new Yugoslav federation was formed - the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), which included Serbia and Montenegro (Fig. 10). This rapid disintegration of the SFRY took place in various forms– both relatively peaceful (Slovenia, Macedonia) and extremely violent (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina).

The separation was of the most peaceful nature Slovenia, during which, although it was not possible to avoid a small armed conflict, it turned out to be only an episode in this rather calm “divorce” process. And in the future, no serious political, let alone military-political complications arose here.

Separation from the SFRY Macedonia was accompanied not by military, but by diplomatic conflict. After the declaration of independence of this state, neighboring Greece refused to recognize it. The point here is that until 1912 Macedonia was part of Ottoman Empire, and after liberation from Turkish rule, its territory was divided between Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria and Albania. Consequently, independent Macedonia, which separated from the SFRY, covered only one of the four parts of this historical region, and Greece feared that the new state would lay claim to its Greek part as well. Therefore, Macedonia was ultimately admitted to the UN with the wording “Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia”.

Rice. 10. Independent states that emerged on the site of the former SFRY

Much larger military-political complications accompanied the separation from the former SFRY Croatia, in the population of which in the early 1990s. the share of Serbs exceeded 12%, and some of its regions have long been considered originally Serbian. First of all, this applies to the so-called Military Region, a border region created back in the 16th–18th centuries. Austria and preserved in the 19th century. after the formation of Austria-Hungary along the border with the Ottoman Empire. It was here that many Orthodox Serbs settled, fleeing persecution from the Turks. Based on their numerical superiority, these Serbs, even during the existence of the SFRY, announced the creation of their autonomous region of Krajina within the Federal Republic of Croatia, and after Croatia’s secession from the SFRY at the end of 1991, they proclaimed the formation of the independent Republic of Serbian Krajina with its center in the city of Knin , announcing its separation from Croatia. However, this self-proclaimed republic was not recognized by the UN, which sent a peacekeeping force to Croatia to prevent military development conflict. And in 1995, Croatia, choosing a moment when the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was economically greatly weakened by a tough embargo from Western countries, sent its troops into Krajna, and a few days later the republic of the Croatian Serbs ceased to exist. In 1998, Croatia also returned to itself the territory of Eastern Slavonia, captured by the Serbs back in 1991 as a result of a bloody military operation. This development of events gave rise to Serbian radicals to accuse the then President of the FRY, Slobodan Milosevic, of “betraying the Krajina.”

Rice. 11. Settlement of the peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina

The former Soviet republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia became the arena of even more irreconcilable military-political and ethno-religious confrontation Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was distinguished by the most multinational composition of the population, which for many centuries served as the root cause of various kinds of ethnic conflicts. According to the 1991 census, Serbs made up 31% of its inhabitants, Muslims 44%, Croats 17%, and the rest from other ethnic groups. After the declaration of independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it turned out that Serbs constituted the majority in its northern and eastern regions, Muslims in the central regions, and Croats in the western regions (Fig. 11).

The reluctance of Serbs and Croats to find themselves in a Muslim state, and Muslims in a Christian one, from the very beginning of the independent existence of Bosnia and Herzegovina led to confrontation between them, which in the spring of 1992 escalated into a civil war. At its first stage, the victory was won by the Bosnian Serbs, who, relying on the forces of the Yugoslav army stationed in the republic, captured almost 3/4 of its entire territory, starting “ethnic cleansing” in Muslim areas and actually turning Muslim cities into enclaves, surrounded on all sides by Serbian troops. Most shining example This kind of capital is Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the siege of which by the Serbs lasted more than three years and cost the lives of tens of thousands of its inhabitants. As a result of national-religious divisions in the territory with a predominance of the Serbian population, the Bosnian Republic of Srpska was proclaimed. Croats and Muslims first also formed their own republics, but in 1994, on the basis of an anti-Serbian alliance, they created a single Bosnian Muslim-Croat Federation.

At the same time, a turning point occurred in the course of the war, not in favor of the Serbs, which is explained by several reasons. Firstly, against the government of the FRY, accused of interfering in the affairs of a neighboring state and armed support for the struggle of the Bosnian Serbs, the UN Security Council introduced strict international sanctions. Secondly, the leader of the unrecognized Bosnian Republic of Srpska, Radovan Karadzic, was accused of organizing “ethnic cleansing” and declared a war criminal. Thirdly, the Western allies and many Muslim states began to arm the Bosnian Muslim army, whose combat capability increased markedly as a result. Finally, fourthly, American, British and French planes began bombing Bosnian Serb positions.

The Bosnian War is over late autumn 1995 Under the peace agreement, Bosnia and Herzegovina formally retained the status of an independent state with a single president, parliament, central government and other authorities. But in fact it was divided into two parts. One of them was formed by the Muslim-Croat federation with a territory of 26 thousand km 2, a population of 2.3 million people and a capital in Sarajevo, which has its own president, parliament and government. On the other part, the Republic of Srpska was formed with a territory of 25 thousand km 2, a population of more than 1 million people and the capital in Banja Luka. The configuration of the territory of the Republika Srpska is very bizarre: following the settlement of the Bosnian Serbs, it seems to border the more compact territory of the Muslim-Croat federation on the northern and eastern sides. Republika Srpska also has its own president, parliament and government.

Both the Muslim-Croat Federation and the Republika Srpska are self-proclaimed states, since neither is recognized by the UN. Many of the previous contradictions remain between them, especially taking into account the insufficiently clearly defined border line. So, new armed conflicts are being avoided here mainly due to the fact that at the end of 1995, NATO troops and then the UN peacekeeping contingent were brought into Bosnia and Herzegovina under the flag of peacekeeping; his mandate has already been extended several times. The international peacekeeping force also includes Russian troops.

However, all this is only a visible stabilization of the situation, which has not resolved the main controversial issues. For example, peacekeeping forces were unable to ensure the return of refugees to their places of former residence. But this is perhaps the main task of democratizing life in Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to the UN, the number of refugees in the entire territory of the former SFRY amounted to 2.3 million people, and the vast majority of them are in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Fig. 12). And only about 400 thousand of them returned, including a little more than 200 thousand to Bosnia and Herzegovina. It can be added that the mass exodus of Serbs from Sarajevo led to the fact that this once multinational city actually turned into a mono-ethnic one, where the share of Serbs was reduced to several percent.

Rice. 12. Flows of refugees in the territory of the former SFRY

The next act of the Yugoslav drama took place in the late 1990s. and was associated with the problems of the historical area Kosovo and Metohija, located in the southern part of Serbia. This region occupies 11 thousand km 2, and its population, 9/10 of which are Muslim Albanians, is 1.9 million people.

The historical region of Kosovo and Metohija (Kosovo occupies its eastern flat part, and Metohija its western mountainous part) played a huge role in the formation of Serbian statehood. This is evidenced by numerous historical and architectural monuments that have survived to this day. However, in the XIV century. Kosovo's early heyday was interrupted by the invasion of the Ottoman Turks. It was here, on the ever-famous Kosovo Field, that the decisive battle took place between the army Turkish Sultan Murad I and the Serbian militia, which was defeated by the Turks. From that time on, the lands of Kosovo and Metohija began to fall into desolation and at the same time were populated by Albanians who adopted the Muslim faith. Gradually, there were more and more Albanians here, and after Turkey lost its possessions in Europe and independent Albania was formed in 1912, Kosovo Albanians began to make attempts to reunite their lands with it. To some extent, they were realized only in 1941, when Nazi Germany, having occupied Yugoslavia, created “Greater Albania” consisting of Albania, most of Kosovo and Metohija and part of the Macedonian and Montenegrin lands with the Albanian population.

After the Second World War, the historical region of Kosovo and Metohija, as part of first the people's and then the socialist federal Yugoslavia, from the very beginning received fairly broad autonomy, and according to the 1974 constitution, this autonomous region actually became an independent subject of the federation with very broad rights (with the exception of the right to secede from Serbia). However, in the early 1980s, after the death of the country's leader, Marshal Tito, Albanian nationalism and separatism intensified again, and anti-Serbian protests began in Kosovo. In response to this, in 1989, the Serbian central authorities effectively abolished the autonomy of Kosovo and Metohija. However, this action further aggravated the situation in the region, and it was aggravated by the fact that, according to all main economic indicators, Kosovo ranked in the country last place: its share in national income and industrial production was only 2%. But in terms of the number of unemployed and the share of illiterate people, Kosovo ranked first.

When the collapse of the SFRY began, the Kosovar Albanians also declared independence and created the Republic of Kosovo. Since the Serbian authorities, naturally, did not recognize this republic, dual power actually arose in the region. In preparation for war, Kosovo Albanians created their own military organization - the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). Illegal supplies of weapons to Kosovo from Albania began, and militants arrived from there.

The situation became especially aggravated in 1998, when the Yugoslav authorities tried to liquidate the KLA bases. Western countries actually supported the Albanian separatists, who openly declared their intention to secede from the FRY. Negotiations began with the participation of various kinds of mediators, which, however, led nowhere. As a result, the Serbs were faced with a choice: either give up Kosovo or join unequal struggle with NATO. They preferred the second path, and then, without the sanction of the UN Security Council, NATO countries began massive bombing of Yugoslavia, and the military contingents of this bloc actually occupied Kosovo, dividing the territory into areas of responsibility. So Kosovo actually turned into a protectorate Western countries, under the management of the UN mission (UNMIK) and NATO control. But Albanian nationalists continued to insist on complete independence region, despite the UN Security Council resolution on preserving the territorial integrity of Serbia. At the same time, they relied on the support of the United States and European Union countries, which intervened in this essentially intra-Serbian conflict, proving that Kosovo is unique case and will not lead to a chain reaction in other self-proclaimed states. Serbia, Russia and many other countries opposed such a policy, which violates the principle of the territorial integrity of states. Lengthy negotiations did not produce results, and in February 2008, the Kosovo parliament unilaterally adopted a declaration of sovereignty. But it was not accepted by Serbia, which did not want to lose 15% of its territory, Russia, China and dozens of other countries of the world. Due to the position of permanent Security Council members Russia and China, Kosovo has no chance of joining the UN.

In 2000–2002 On the territory of the former SFRY, a new aggravation of the domestic and foreign political situation occurred. This time it was associated with Macedonia and Montenegro.

Aggravation of the situation in Macedonia also directly related to Kosovo.

Approximately a third of the population of Macedonia are Muslim Albanians, living compactly in areas adjacent to the territories of Albania and Kosovo. At the same time, the number and share of Albanians in the population of this country is gradually increasing due to more at a high pace natural increase characteristic of this ethnic community, and increased in lately migration influx. The events that took place here in the spring of 2001, when large groups Albanian militants invaded Macedonia from Kosovo and began shelling it settlements, in essence, represented another attempt to implement the old idea of ​​\u200b\u200bcreating a “Greater Albania”. These actions caused discord in the relations between Macedonian Albanians and ethnic Macedonians, who had previously always coexisted relatively peacefully. Not only ethnic, but also economic divisions between them intensified. Local Albanians also began to demand self-determination. Truces between Albanians and Macedonians were made and broken many times. As a result, NATO sent its peacekeeping contingent to Macedonia.

The aggravation of relations between the two constituent parts of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia - Serbia and Montenegro - has been brewing for a long time. Management Montenegro began to insist not even on transforming the federation into a confederation, but on secession from the FRY and gaining complete independence. A referendum on this issue was being prepared. Only thanks to the efforts of Western diplomacy at the beginning of 2002, it was possible to achieve a more or less compromise solution - on the transformation of the FRY into a new state called Serbia and Montenegro. The final formalization of the confederation of Serbia and Montenegro took place at the end of 2002, and at the beginning of 2003 it became the 45th member of the Council of Europe. However, the new state lasted only until May 2008; the new government of Montenegro held a referendum on full sovereignty, for which 55% of all residents voted. Thus, a new state appeared on the map of Europe, and the collapse of Yugoslavia was completely completed.

One of his works devoted to the problems of the former SFRY, MSU professor E. B. Valev, a leading specialist in geography Balkan countries– called “Yugoslav Tangle”. Indeed, such a phrase is perhaps most suitable for characterizing the geopolitical and national-religious situation that has developed over the last decade in this part of Europe.

The civil war in the former Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia was a series of armed ethnic conflicts that ultimately led to the complete collapse of the country in 1992. Territorial claims different nations, which had been part of the republic until that moment, and the acute interethnic confrontation demonstrated a certain artificiality of their unification under the socialist banner of a power called “Yugoslavia.”

Yugoslav wars

It is worth noting that the population of Yugoslavia differed great diversity. Slovenians, Serbs, Croats, Macedonians, Hungarians, Romanians, Turks, Bosnians, Albanians, and Montenegrins lived on its territory. All of them were unevenly distributed across the 6 republics of Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina (one republic), Macedonia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Croatia, Serbia.

The start of prolonged hostilities was the so-called “10-day war in Slovenia”, unleashed in 1991. The Slovenes demanded recognition of the independence of their republic. During the hostilities on the Yugoslav side, 45 people were killed and 1.5 hundred were injured. From the Slovenian side - 19 killed, about 2 hundred wounded. 5 thousand soldiers of the Yugoslav army were captured.

Following this, a longer (1991-1995) war for Croatian independence began. Its secession from Yugoslavia was followed by armed conflicts within the new independent republic between the Serbian and Croatian populations. The Croatian War claimed the lives of more than 20 thousand people. 12 thousand - from the Croatian side (and 4.5 thousand are civilians). Hundreds of thousands of buildings were destroyed, and all material damage is estimated at 27 billion dollars.

Almost in parallel with this, another civil war broke out within Yugoslavia, which was falling apart into its components - the Bosnian War (1992-1995). Several took part in it at once ethnic groups: Serbs, Croats, Bosnian Muslims and so-called Autonomist Muslims living in western Bosnia. Over 3 years, more than 100 thousand people were killed. The material damage is colossal: 2 thousand km of roads were blown up, 70 bridges were demolished. The railway connection was completely destroyed. 2/3 of the buildings are destroyed and unusable.

Concentration camps were opened in war-torn territories (on both sides). During the hostilities, blatant cases of terror occurred: mass rape of Muslim women, ethnic cleansing, during which several thousand Bosnian Muslims were killed. All those killed belonged to civilian population. Croatian militants even shot 3-month-old children.

Crisis in the countries of the former socialist bloc

If we do not go into the intricacies of all interethnic and territorial claims and grievances, then we can give approximately the following description of the described civil wars: the same thing happened to Yugoslavia that was happening at the same time to the Soviet Union. The countries of the former socialist camp were experiencing an acute crisis. The socialist doctrine of “friendship of fraternal peoples” ceased to apply, and everyone wanted independence.

In terms of armed clashes and the use of force, the Soviet Union literally “got off with a slight scare” compared to Yugoslavia. The collapse of the USSR was not as bloody as it was in the Serbian-Croatian-Bosnian region. Following the Bosnian War, protracted armed confrontations began in Kosovo, Macedonia and Southern Serbia (or the Presevo Valley) on the territory of the former Republic of Yugoslavia. In total, the civil war in the former Yugoslavia lasted 10 years, until 2001. The victims number in the hundreds of thousands.

Neighbors' reaction

This war was characterized by exceptional cruelty. Europe, guided by the principles of democracy, initially tried to stay away. The former “Yugoslavs” had the right to clarify their territorial claims themselves and sort things out within the country. At first, the Yugoslav army tried to resolve the conflict, but following the collapse of Yugoslavia itself, it was abolished. In the first years of the war, the Yugoslav armed forces also showed inhuman cruelty.

The war has dragged on too long. Europe and, first of all, the United States decided that such a tense and prolonged confrontation could threaten the security of other countries. The mass ethnic cleansing, which claimed the lives of tens of thousands of innocent people, caused particular outrage among the world community. In response to them, in 1999, NATO began bombing Yugoslavia. The Russian government clearly opposed such a solution to the conflict. President Yeltsin stated that NATO aggression could push Russia to more decisive action.

But only 8 years have passed since the collapse of the Union. Russia itself was greatly weakened. The country simply did not have the resources to start a conflict, and other levers of influence did not yet exist. Russia was not able to help the Serbs, and NATO was well aware of this. Russia’s opinion was then simply ignored, since it weighed too little in the political arena.

Yugoslavia - history, collapse, war.

Events in Yugoslavia in the early 1990s shocked the whole world. Horror civil war, the atrocities of “national cleansing”, genocide, mass exodus from the country - since 1945, Europe has not seen anything like this.

Until 1991, Yugoslavia was the largest state in the Balkans. Historically, the country has been home to people of many nationalities, and differences between ethnic groups have increased over time. Thus, the Slovenes and Croats in the northwestern part of the country became Catholics and USED the Latin alphabet, while the Serbs and Montenegrins who lived closer to the south. accepted Orthodox faith and used the Cyrillic alphabet for writing.

These lands attracted many conquerors. Croatia was captured by Hungary. 2 subsequently became part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire; Serbia, like most of the Balkans, was annexed to the Ottoman Empire, and only Montenegro was able to defend its independence. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, due to political and religious factors, many residents converted to Islam.

When the Ottoman Empire began to lose its former power, Austria captured Bosnia and Herzegovina, thereby expanding its influence in the Balkans. In 1882, Serbia was reborn as an independent state: the desire to free the Slavic brothers from the yoke of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy united many Serbs.

Federal Republic

On January 31, 1946, the Constitution of the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia (FPRY) was adopted, which established its federal structure consisting of six republics - Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Montenegro, as well as two autonomous (self-governing) regions - Vojvodina and Kosovo.

Serbs made up the largest ethnic group in Yugoslavia with 36% of the inhabitants. They inhabited not only Serbia, nearby Montenegro and Vojvodina: many Serbs also lived in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Kosovo. In addition to the Serbs, the country was inhabited by Slovenes, Croats, Macedonians, Albanians (in Kosovo), a national minority of Hungarians in the Vojvodina region, as well as many other small ethnic groups. Fairly or not, representatives of other national groups believed that the Serbs were trying to gain power over the entire country.

The beginning of the end

National issues in socialist Yugoslavia were considered a relic of the past. However, one of the most serious internal problems There was tension between different ethnic groups. The northwestern republics - Slovenia and Croatia - prospered, while the standard of living of the southeastern republics left much to be desired. Massive indignation was growing in the country - a sign that the Yugoslavs did not at all consider themselves a single people, despite 60 years of existence within one power.

In 1990, in response to events in Central and Eastern Europe Communist Party Yugoslavia decided to introduce a multi-party system in the country. In the 1990 elections, Milosevic's socialist (formerly communist) party won large number votes in many regions, but achieved a decisive victory only in Serbia and Montenegro.

There were heated debates in other regions. Tough measures aimed at crushing Albanian nationalism met with decisive resistance in Kosovo. In Croatia, the Serb minority (12% of the population) held a referendum in which it was decided to achieve autonomy; Frequent clashes with the Croats led to a rebellion among the local Serbs. The biggest blow for the Yugoslav state was the referendum in December 1990, which declared the independence of Slovenia.

Of all the republics, only Serbia and Montenegro now sought to maintain a strong, relatively centralized state; in addition, they had an impressive advantage - the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), which could become a trump card during future debates.

Yugoslav War

In 1991, the SFRY disintegrated. In May, Croats voted to secede from Yugoslavia, and on June 25, Slovenia and Croatia officially declared their independence. There were battles in Slovenia, but the federal positions were not strong enough, and soon the JNA troops were withdrawn from the territory of the former republic.

The Yugoslav army also acted against the rebels in Croatia; in the war that broke out, thousands of people were killed, hundreds of thousands were forced to leave their homes. All attempts by the European community and the UN to force the parties to cease fire in Croatia were in vain. The West was initially reluctant to watch the collapse of Yugoslavia, but soon began to condemn the “Great Serbian ambitions.”

The Serbs and Montenegrins accepted the inevitable split and proclaimed the creation of a new state - the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The hostilities in Croatia were over, although the conflict was not over. A new nightmare began when national tensions in Bosnia worsened.

UN peacekeeping forces were sent to Bosnia, and with varying degrees of success they succeeded in stopping the massacre, easing the fate of the besieged and starving population, and creating “safe zones” for Muslims. In August 1992, the world was shocked by revelations of the brutal treatment of people in prison camps. The United States and other countries openly accused the Serbs of genocide and war crimes, but still did not allow their troops to intervene in the conflict; later, however, it turned out that not only the Serbs were involved in the atrocities of that time.

Threats of UN air attacks forced the JNA to surrender its position and end the siege of Sarajevo, but it was clear that peacekeeping efforts to preserve multi-ethnic Bosnia had failed.

In 1996, a number of opposition parties formed a coalition called Unity, which soon organized other major cities Yugoslavia mass demonstrations against the ruling regime. However, in the elections held in the summer of 1997, Milosevic was again elected president of the FRY.

After unsuccessful negotiations between the government of the FRY and the Albanian leaders Liberation Army In Kosovo (blood was still being shed in this conflict), NATO issued an ultimatum to Milosevic. Starting from the end of March 1999, missile and bomb attacks began to be carried out almost every night on the territory of Yugoslavia; they ended only on June 10, after representatives of the FRY and NATO signed an agreement on entry into Kosovo international forces security (KFOR).

Among the refugees who left Kosovo during the hostilities, there were approximately 350 thousand people of non-Albanian nationality. Many of them settled in Serbia, where total number displaced persons reached 800 thousand, and the number of those who lost their jobs was about 500 thousand people.

In 2000, parliamentary and presidential elections were held in the FRY and local elections in Serbia and Kosovo. Opposition parties nominated a single candidate - the leader of the Democratic Party of Serbia, Vojislav Kostunica - for the presidency. On September 24, he won the elections with more than 50% of the votes (Milosevic - only 37%). Summer 2001 former president FRY was extradited International Tribunal in The Hague as a war criminal.

March 14, 2002 through mediation European Union an agreement was signed on the creation of a new state - Serbia and Montenegro (Vojvodina had shortly before become autonomous). However interethnic relations are still too fragile, and the internal political and economic situation in the country is unstable. In the summer of 2001, shots were fired again: Kosovo militants became more active, and this gradually developed into an open conflict between Albanian Kosovo and Macedonia, which lasted about a year. Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic, who authorized the transfer of Milosevic to the tribunal, was killed by a gunshot on March 12, 2003. sniper rifle. Apparently, the “Balkan knot” will not be untangled anytime soon.

In 2006, Montenegro finally separated from Serbia and became an independent state. The European Union and the United States made an unprecedented decision and recognized the independence of Kosovo as a sovereign state.

Yugoslavia for a long time was a significant and important state on the world stage: developed economy and industry, especially the production of weapons, cars and chemicals; a huge army, the number of which exceeded 600 thousand soldiers... But the internal strife and conflicts that tormented the country reached their apogee in the 90s of the last century and led to the collapse of Yugoslavia. Today all schoolchildren who study history know which states it was divided into. These are Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as Kosovo, a partially recognized power.

At the origins

Yugoslavia was once the largest state. The peoples living on these lands had very different customs and traditions, culture and even religion. But, despite this, they all lived in one country: Catholics and Orthodox, those who wrote in Latin and those who wrote in Cyrillic.

Yugoslavia has always been a tasty morsel for many conquerors. Thus, Hungary captured Croatia back in the 12th century. Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina became part of the Ottoman Empire, and many residents of these lands were forced to convert to Islam. And only Montenegro remained free and independent for a long time. Over time, the Turkish state lost its influence and power, so Austria took possession of the Yugoslav territories that previously belonged to the Ottomans. Only in XIX century Serbia managed to be reborn as an independent state.

It was this country that united all the scattered Balkan lands. The King of Serbia became the ruler of the Croats, Slovenes and other Yugoslav peoples. One of the monarchs, Alexander I, organized a coup in 1929 and gave the state a new name - Yugoslavia, which translates as “land of the southern Slavs.”

Federal Republic

The history of Yugoslavia in the 20th century took shape against the backdrop of world wars. During World War II, a powerful anti-fascist movement was created here. The communists organized a partisan underground. But after the victory over Hitler, Yugoslavia never became part of Soviet Union, as expected. It remained free, but there was only one leading party - the communist one.

At the beginning of 1946, a constitution was adopted here, which marked the creation of the new Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. It consisted of six independent units. Serbia, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as two autonomous provinces - Kosovo and Vojvodina - formed a new power. What countries would Yugoslavia break up into in the future? It is these small and original republics, among which Serbia has always been the leader. Its inhabitants constituted the largest ethnic group: almost 40% of all Yugoslavia. It is logical that other members of the federation did not like this much, and conflicts and strife began within the state.

The beginning of the end

Tensions between different ethnic groups are the main reason Yugoslavia fell apart. To which states did the leaders of the uprisings direct their discontent and aggression? First of all, to northwestern Croatia and Slovenia, which flourished and seemed to tease with their high level lives of poorer peoples. Anger and tension among the masses grew. The Yugoslavs no longer considered themselves a single people, despite the fact that they had lived side by side for 60 years.

In 1980, the leader of the communists, Marshal Tito, died. After this, the Chairman of the Presidium was elected every year in May from among the candidates submitted by each republic. Despite this equality, people still remained dissatisfied and dissatisfied. Since 1988, the standard of living of all residents of Yugoslavia has sharply deteriorated, production began to decline, and instead inflation and unemployment flourished. The country's leaders, led by Mikulic, resigned, Slovenia wanted full sovereignty, and nationalist sentiments tore Kosovo apart. These events were the beginning of the end and led to the disintegration of Yugoslavia. What states it was divided into is demonstrated by the current world map, where such independent countries as Slovenia, Macedonia, Croatia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina are clearly identified.

Slobodan Milosevic

This active leader came to power in 1988, at the peak of civil strife. He primarily directed his policy towards returning under the wing of the federal and Vojvodina. And although there were very few ethnic Serbs in these lands, many residents of the country supported him. Milosevic's actions only made the situation worse. Whether he wanted to create a powerful Serbian state or simply took advantage of internal conflicts to take a warm government seat, no one knows. But in the end, Yugoslavia fell apart. Today even children know which states it was divided into. The history of the Balkan Peninsula is given more than one paragraph in textbooks.

In 1989, the economy and politics in the FPRY experienced a rapid decline. Ante Marković, the new prime minister, tried to introduce a number of reforms, but it was too late. Inflation reached 1000%, the country's debt to other countries grew to $21 billion. Against this background, Serbia adopted a new constitution that deprived Vojvodina and Kosovo of autonomy. Slovenia, meanwhile, entered into an alliance with Croatia.

Introduction of a multi-party system

The history of Yugoslavia as a single indivisible state ends in the early 1990s. In those years, they were still trying to save the country from collapse: the communists decided to share power with other parties that would be freely and independently chosen by the people. The expression of will was held in 1990. Milosevic's Communist Party won the lion's share of the votes, but complete victory could only be said in Montenegro and Serbia.

At the same time, debates were raging in other regions. Kosovo resisted harsh measures taken to quell Albanian nationalism. In Croatia, the Serbs decided to create their own autonomy. But the biggest blow was the announcement of independence by little Slovenia, for which the local population voted in a referendum. After this, the FPRY began to burst at the seams. What countries did Yugoslavia break up into? In addition to Slovenia, Macedonia and Croatia also quickly separated, followed by Bosnia and Herzegovina. Over time, Montenegro and Serbia became separate states, which until the last supported the integrity of the Balkan power.

War in Yugoslavia

The FRNJ government has long tried to preserve the once powerful and rich country. Troops were sent to Croatia to eliminate the riots that arose there amid the struggle for independence. The history of the collapse of Yugoslavia began precisely from this region, and also from Slovenia - these two republics were the first to rebel. During the years of hostilities, tens of thousands of people were killed here, hundreds of thousands lost their homes forever.

Further violence erupted in Bosnia and Kosovo. The blood of innocent people has been shed here almost every day for almost a decade. For a long time, neither the ruling authorities nor the peacekeeping troops sent here by the West could cut the so-called Yugoslav knot. Subsequently, NATO and the European Union already waged war on Milosevic himself, exposing his massacres of civilians and atrocities against prisoners of war in camps. As a result, he was court-martialed.

How many countries did Yugoslavia break up into? After many years Instead of just one power, there were six confrontations on the world map. These are Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. There is also Kosovo, but not all countries have recognized its independence. Among those who did this first were the European Union and the United States.

Kingdom Yugoslavia was formed in 1918 as a union of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes after the end of the First World War. After World War II in 1945. Yugoslavia began to be called a socialist federation of six union republics and occupied an area of ​​255.8 thousand sq. km. and the capital Belgrade. Having existed for about 88 years, the state collapsed after 2006. no longer existed as a single state space.
The flag of Yugoslavia contained blue, white and red stripes, with a large five-pointed star in the foreground.

Step 2

So, Yugoslavia, a European state that existed on the Balkan Peninsula and had access to the Adriatic Sea, now consists of six independent states and two autonomous regions.
Today, the former Yugoslavia is the countries of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Serbia, which includes 2 autonomous regions of Vojvodina and Kosovo, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro.

Step 3

Bosnia and Herzegovina, capital of the state Sarajevo. The country's area is 51,129 thousand sq. km. The country has several official languages: Bosnian, Serbian, Croatian.
Sarajevo hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics, and then the city became a center of military operations during the Yugoslav civil war in 1992-1995.
Today the country is popular for its medical balneological resorts, ski resorts and beach holiday, because has a narrow outlet to the Adriatic Sea.

Step 4

Macedonia, capital of the state Skopje. This is an ancient city that dates back to the 3rd century BC. The area of ​​the country is 25.7 thousand sq. km., state language– Macedonian. Macedonia mountainous country, almost the entire area is occupied by mountain ranges different heights. Macedonia does not have access to the sea, but on its territory there are several ski resorts And historical monuments, associated with the Roman Empire and Turkish rule in this part of the Balkan Peninsula.
Macedonia

Step 5

Serbia, capital of the state Belgrade. The country's area is 88,361 thousand square kilometers, the official language is Serbian.
Belgrade arose in the first century AD, from 1284 it came under Serbian rule and today is its capital. Of all the countries of the former Yugoslavia, Serbia has the most flat fertile land and deciduous forests. There is no access to the Adriatic Sea, but there is an artificial Belgrade Sea. Also, rivers of extraordinary beauty flow through Serbia, on the mountainous part of which you can raft, the most big river Serbia - Danube.
Serbia also includes two autonomous provinces Kosovo, capital Pristina And Vojvodina, capital Novi Sad.
Serbia

Step 6

Slovenia, capital of the state Ljubljana. The country's area is 20,251 thousand square kilometers, the official language is Slovenian.
Slovenia is small, but very beautiful country. It has everything, snow-capped Alpine peaks, valleys with gardens and vineyards, and the Adriatic coast. Even the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, has an unusual history: according to legend, the city was founded by the Argonauts when they returned from Colchis after their journey for the Golden Fleece.
Slovenia today mainly lives on tourism, and also has a developed industry, including pharmaceuticals.
Slovenia.

Step 7

Croatia, capital of the state Zagreb. The country's area is 56,538 thousand square kilometers, the official language is Croatian. Zagreb is quite a large but cozy city with many architectural and historical attractions.
Croatia is a country that has the longest Adriatic coast of all the countries of the former Yugoslavia. That is why it is famous for its resorts around the cities of Split, Shebenik, Trogir, Dubrovnik. On the territory of Croatia there are unique nature reserves Krka, Paklenica, Kornati, etc. One of the cities of Croatia, Split is one of oldest cities Dolmatia (region of Croatia), its age exceeds 1700 years. In the center of the city of Split there is Diocletian's Palace, which now houses residential apartments for the city's residents.