THE BALKANS - Quick Facts

The Balkans has always been a tough neighborhood -- a rugged, fractious crossroads between Europe and the Middle East. The infamous assassination of an Austro-Hungarian archduke by a Serbian nationalist sparked World War I, and people in the Balkans are still split by ethnic and religious rivalries.

In the wake of World War I, Croats and Serbs, together with Slovenes, were united with the creation of Yugoslavia. Germany occupied the region during World War II, and after 1945, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state, led by Marshal Tito, who had been a leader of anti-Nazi partisans. For the next 45 years, the dictatorial Tito -- who became president for life in 1963 -- ran a relatively independent socialist state. With a heavy hand, he enforced a unity that held deep-seated ethnic and nationalist rivalries at bay. Tito died in 1980, and not long after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the nation of Yugoslavia unraveled: What was left of Yugoslavia came under the control of President Slobodan Milosevic. In 1991, Croatia tried to break free by declaring its independence.

War erupted when Milosevic led brutal military campaigns to unite ethnic Serbs in neighboring republics, including in Croatian cities. Hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed or displaced by Milosevic's policy of "ethnic cleansing." In 1995, Croatia retaliated with a large-scale military operation to reclaim parts of Croatia held by Serbian forces. The war between Croatia and Serbia finally ended with the U.S.-brokered Dayton (Ohio) Agreement in November 1995, but violence spread to Bosnia and to Kosovo, where Christian Serbs fought Muslims. In 1999, U.S. and NATO forces bombed Serbia and stationed peacekeepers in the region. The three-month-long bombing ended much of the anti-Muslim violence, but Milosevic remained in power.

Shortly after the NATO bombing ended, opposition groups began organizing against Milosevic. In the September 2000 elections, Milosevic lost the majority vote, but refused to step down. In response, the opposition -- including the student group Otpor ("resistance") -- staged a general strike, and within a few weeks, Milosevic was ousted. His challenger, Vojislav Kostunica, a conservative nationalist, was named president of Yugoslavia In June 2001, Milosevic was extradited to The Hague and is currently on trial for crimes against humanity.

Meanwhile, in Croatia numerous state officials have been implicated in war crimes, weakening the government. Under conservative prime minister Ivo Sanader, who was elected last year, the country is slowly moving beyond sectarian conflict.

In Serbia, democrats, nationalists and radicals are all vying for influence in the government. After a recent election, Kostunica became prime minister. Boris Tadic, a member of the Democratic Party, was elected president of Serbia in June 2004.

Tensions remain high over what will happen with Kosovo, a province of Serbia that is populated by ethnic Albanians and a Serb minority. Many Serbs fear that an independent Kosovo will oppress the Serb minority and lead to more unrest in the Balkans. In March, Kosovo saw the worst ethnic violence in years, when 19 Serbs were killed and 900 injured in riots.

back to top

close window