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Timeline of geopolitical changes | |
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This is a timeline of country and capital changes around the world since 2000. It includes dates of declarations of independence, changes in country name, changes of capital city or name, and changes in territory such as the annexation, cession, concession, occupation, or secession of land. Territorial conquests as a result of war are included on the timeline at the conclusion of military campaigns. However, those changes in the course of specific battles and day-to-day operations are generally not included in this list. Changes in airspace and maritime territory are included only when they are subject to a dispute. [a]
Year | Date | Event |
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2000 | 20 March | Six weeks after the fall of Grozny, the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria is overthrown as a state following its defeat in the Battle of Komsomolskoye; as an insurgency it continues to resist Russian rule in Chechnya for years. |
24 May | Israel completely withdraws from its occupation zone in southern Lebanon , where it is replaced by United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon peacekeeping forces. | |
12 June | Saudi Arabia and Yemen sign a treaty resolving their border dispute. | |
17 August | Colombia returns its capital city's name from Santa Fe de Bogotá back to Bogotá, Distrito Capital. [1] | |
5 September | Taloqan, the de facto capital of the Islamic State of Afghanistan , falls to the Taliban's Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan . The capital moves to Fayzabad. [2] | |
2001 | 16 March | The ICJ resolves the territorial dispute between Bahrain and Qatar , awarding Fasht Al Azm, Qit'at Jaradah, and most of the Hawar Islands to Bahrain, and Fasht Dibal, Zubarah, and Janan Island to Qatar. [3] |
21 March | Qatar and Saudi Arabia sign a treaty resolving their border dispute. [4] | |
1 July | The temporarily independent Puntland State of Somalia adopts a new constitution explicitly identifying itself as an "independent integral part of Somalia ". [5] | |
11 September | Four coordinated suicide attacks by the Islamist jihadist organisation Al-Qaeda are organized against the United States , via hijacking commercial airliners mid-flight. [6] 2,996 people are killed and the US begins the war on terror. | |
7 October | The United States and a NATO-led alliance invade Afghanistan , beginning an occupation which continued until 2021. | |
13 November | The capital of the Islamic State of Afghanistan returns to Kabul with the reconquest of the city by the forces of the Northern Alliance , beginning a cascading collapse of the Taliban forces of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan . | |
17 December | The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is completely overthrown following its defeat in the Battle of Tora Bora. The Taliban soon reemerges as an insurgency. | |
23 December | The Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros changes its name to the Union of the Comoros . [7] | |
2002 | 14 February | The State of Bahrain changes its name to the Kingdom of Bahrain . [8] |
10 March | The Union of the Comoros reabsorbs the de facto independent State of Anjouan and the Democratic Republic of Mohéli . Mutsamudu and Fomboni yield to Moroni as the capital. [9] | |
20 May | The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste gains independence with the promulgation of a constitution and the conclusion of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor . Dili remains the capital. | |
21 May | The United Kingdom changes the title of its British Dependent Territories to that of British Overseas Territories . The citizens of each British Overseas Territory gain full British citizenship. | |
2003 | 4 February | The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia changes its name to the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro . [10] |
20 March | United States-led coalition forces invade Iraq , beginning an occupation which lasts for more than eight years. | |
15 April | United States forces conquer Tikrit, the last stronghold of Ba'athist Iraq . [11] | |
28 March | France reorganizes the Territorial collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon as the Overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon . [12] | |
France reorganizes the Overseas Territory of Wallis and Futuna as the Overseas collectivity of Wallis and Futuna . [13] | ||
France reorganizes the Overseas Territory of French Polynesia as the Overseas collectivity of French Polynesia . [14] | ||
26 May | The Rwandese Republic changes its name to the Republic of Rwanda . [15] | |
2004 | 9 January | Kazakhstan agrees to a revision of the terms of Russia's lease of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, extending it to 2050 with no established options on further extensions. [16] |
27 February | France elevates the Overseas collectivity of French Polynesia to the Overseas Country of French Polynesia . [17] | |
29 March | Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia join NATO in the alliance's fifth enlargement. | |
1 May | Ten more states join the European Union : Cyprus , Czech Republic , Estonia , Hungary , Latvia , Lithuania , Malta , Poland , Slovakia , and Slovenia . | |
1 September | The Antarctic Treaty Secretariat administering Antarctica and all lands and waters south of the 60th parallel south establishes its headquarters in Buenos Aires, Argentina. | |
7 December | The Islamic State of Afghanistan changes its name to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan with the end of the transitional period set out in the new constitution. [18] [19] [20] | |
2005 | 12 September | Israel completely withdraws its forces from the Gaza Strip . A Palestinian Civil War leads to Gaza effectively withdrawing from the Palestinian Authority and becoming a separate entity under Hamas by June 2007. |
6 November | Myanmar moves its capital from Yangon to Naypyidaw. [21] | |
2006 | Uzbekistan rejoins the Collective Security Treaty Organization after previously leaving in 1999. | |
3 June | The Republic of Montenegro secedes from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro . Podgorica remains the capital. | |
5 June | The Republic of Serbia supersedes the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. Belgrade remains the capital. | |
7 October | Palau moves its capital from Koror to Ngerulmud. [22] | |
2007 | 1 January | Bulgaria and Romania join the European Union . |
15 January | The Kingdom of Nepal changes its name to the State of Nepal . [23] | |
21 February | France detaches the Overseas collectivity of Saint Barthélemy from Guadeloupe . Gustavia becomes the capital. | |
France detaches the Overseas collectivity of Collectivity of Saint Martin from Guadeloupe . Marigot becomes the capital. | ||
France integrates the Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean into the French Southern and Antarctic Lands as its fifth district. [24] | ||
22 October | The Republic of Montenegro changes its name to Montenegro . | |
2008 | 17 February | The Republic of Kosovo declares independence from Serbia , which continues to claim it as the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija; other countries divide on recognizing its declaration. Pristina remains the capital. [25] |
4 August | The State of Nepal changes its name to the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal . [26] | |
11 August | The separatist forces of South Ossetia , supported by Russia , completely expel the forces of Georgia from the territory of the former South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast, which Georgia continues to claim in its entirety. | |
12 August | The separatist forces of Abkhazia , supported by Russia , completely expel the forces of Georgia from Upper Abkhazia, the last territory held by Georgia in the region which it continues to claim in its entirety. | |
14 August | Nigeria completes the transfer of Bakassi to Cameroon , fulfilling the terms of a 2002 ICJ ruling on the disputed territory. [27] | |
27 August | Russia recognizes the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia . Most countries continue to recognize these territories as part of Georgia. [28] | |
14 October | China is ceded 174 km2 (67 sq mi) of land by Russia as part of a treaty delimiting the borders and settling a territorial dispute between the two countries. [29] | |
2009 | 7 February | The Republic of Bolivia changes its name to the Plurinational State of Bolivia . [30] |
1 April | Albania and Croatia join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in the alliance's sixth enlargement. | |
14 July | China is ceded 9 km2 (3.5 sq mi) of land by Kyrgyzstan as part of a treaty delimiting the borders between the two countries. [31] [32] | |
1 September | The British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena and Dependencies changes its name to Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha . Jamestown on Saint Helena remains the capital. | |
24 November | The United States cedes six uninhabited islands totaling 0.44 km2 (0.17 sq mi) in the Rio Grande river to Mexico and Mexico cedes three uninhabited islands and two bancos totaling 0.27 km2 (0.10 sq mi) after pending for 20 years. [33] |
Year | Date | Event |
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2010 | 21 April | Ukraine extends Russia's lease on naval facilities in Sevastopol for an additional twenty-five years beyond the 2017 expiration, until 2042, with further renewal options thereafter. [34] |
10 October | The Kingdom of the Netherlands dissolves the Netherlands Antilles. [35] New polities include:
| |
21 October | The Union of Myanmar changes its name to the Republic of the Union of Myanmar . [36] | |
2011 | 11 January | Tajikistan cedes 1,322 km2 (510 sq mi) of land to China after the final ratification of boundary treaties between the two countries. [37] |
2 February | The Republic of the Fiji Islands changes its name back to the Republic of Fiji . [38] | |
15 March | Unrest in Syria leads to the beginning of the Syrian civil war. | |
31 March | Implementing the decision of a March 2009 referendum, France incorporates the Departmental collectivity of Mayotte as the Overseas department and region of Mayotte. [39] | |
9 July | Following a referendum in January, Southern Sudan gains independence from Sudan as the Republic of South Sudan . Juba remains the capital. [40] | |
1 September | Amidst a civil war, Muammar Gaddafi moves the capital of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from Tripoli to Sirte, days after the rebel forces of the National Transitional Council , supported by NATO, conquered Tripoli. [41] | |
16 September | Libya officially supersedes the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, as the United Nations General Assembly seats the representatives of the National Transitional Council and recognizes the country's name change. [42] [43] | |
20 October | The Libyan Arab Jamahiriya is overthrown following its defeat in the Battle of Sirte. The government of Libya declares the end of the civil war three days later. [44] | |
18 December | The United States ends its occupation of Iraq . [45] | |
31 December | Samoa and Tokelau switch to the western side of the International Date Line , skipping 30 December entirely. [46] | |
2012 | Uzbekistan leaves the Collective Security Treaty Organisation for a second time after rejoining the alliance in 2006. | |
1 January | The Republic of Hungary changes its name to Hungary . [47] | |
25 January | The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) conquers Aguelhok, the first town to fall under the control of the militant separatist group in northern Mali . [48] | |
6 April | The State of Azawad declares independence from Mali , after the MNLA conquers northern Mali's largest cities between 30 March and 2 April. Timbuktu is proclaimed the capital; Gao serves as the provisional capital. [49] | |
26 May | Georgia moves its legislative capital from Tbilisi to Kutaisi. Tbilisi remains the administrative capital. | |
15 June | A standoff beginning 8 April over Scarborough Shoal ends with an agreement between China and the Philippines to both withdraw their forces: only the Philippines actually does so, leaving China in effective possession. [50] | |
12 July | Ansongo, the last town controlled by the State of Azawad , is conquered by Ansar Dine , a militant group aiming to make Mali an Islamist state which had already conquered Azawad's largest cities on 27–28 June. [51] | |
20 August | The Somali Republic changes its name to the Federal Republic of Somalia . | |
19 November | The ICJ resolves the territorial dispute between Nicaragua and Colombia , upholding Colombia's sovereignty over disputed islands while ceding Nicaragua much of the surrounding maritime territory. [52] | |
29 November | The United Nations General Assembly votes to upgrade the status of the State of Palestine from "entity" to "non-member observer state," effectively granting it recognition. [53] | |
14 December | China declares an exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea which extends hundreds of kilometers into Japan's maritime claims. | |
2013 | 8 January | The General National Congress changes the provisional name of Libya to the State of Libya , pending the adoption of a new constitution. [54] |
1 July | Croatia joins the European Union . | |
24 October | The Republic of Cape Verde changes its official English name to the Republic of Cabo Verde , [55] following precedents set by Côte d'Ivoire and Timor-Leste . | |
11 November | The ICJ clarifies its 1962 ruling on the disputed border between Cambodia and Thailand , awarding the promontory of Preah Vihear to Cambodia and Phu Ma-khuea hill to Thailand. | |
23 November | China declares an Air Defense Identification Zone over the East China Sea, around half of which overlaps with the previously declared airspace of Japan , South Korea , and Taiwan . | |
2014 | 4 January | The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant captures Fallujah in Iraq, the first significant city the militant group is able to maintain control over. [56] |
14 January | After having been expelled from the city by Syrian rebels early in the month, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant seizes total control of Raqqa, the largest city to fall under its rule in Syria. [57] [58] | |
27 January | The ICJ publishes a new boundary resolving the maritime dispute between Chile and Peru . [59] | |
24 February | Russia begins occupying parts of the Crimea region of Ukraine . | |
17 March | The Republic of Crimea declares independence from Ukraine following a disputed referendum. Sevastopol and Simferopol are the de facto capitals. [60] | |
18 March | The Republic of Crimea is annexed by Russia as two separate federal entities: the Republic of Crimea and the federal city of Sevastopol. Most countries continue to recognize Crimea as part of Ukraine. [61] | |
26 March | Crimea is fully occupied by Russia . [62] | |
12 April | Serbia and Afghanistan become observer states to the Collective Security Treaty Organization . [63] | |
11 May | The Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic declare independence from Ukraine following referendums. Donetsk and Luhansk become their capitals. | |
10 June | The Islamic State completely conquers Mosul, the second largest city in Iraq. | |
29 June | Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant , declares the foundation of a new caliphate, the Islamic State . Raqqa is the de facto capital. [64] | |
2015 | 20 February | The Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic consolidate their territories with the conquest of Debaltseve from Ukraine , the last major battle of the war in Donbas. |
21 March | Amidst a civil war, the Cabinet of Yemen provisionally moves the capital of Yemen to Aden, while the Supreme Political Council remains in the official capital of Sanaa. [65] | |
8 May | Burkina Faso and Niger agree to implement the ICJ's 2013 judgment on their frontier dispute case by exchanging 18 towns over the following year (Burkina Faso to gain 14, Niger to gain 4). [66] | |
31 July | India and Bangladesh exchange 162 enclaves, simplifying their mutual border in the region of the former Cooch Behar princely state; Bangladesh gains a net 40 km2 (15 sq mi). [67] | |
26 August | Syria formally agrees to lease its Khmeimim Air Base to Russia with no time limit. [68] | |
11 December | The Republic of The Gambia changes its name to the Islamic Republic of The Gambia by presidential decree. [69] [70] | |
16 December | The ICJ cedes 3 km2 (1.2 sq mi) to Costa Rica , resolving part of the San Juan River border dispute with Nicaragua . [71] | |
2016 | 5 April | After four days of fighting, Azerbaijan reconquers 8–20 km2 (3.1–7.7 sq mi) of territory controlled by the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic since 1994. |
2 May | The Czech Republic changes its official English short-form name to Czechia. [72] | |
1 July | Australia incorporates Norfolk Island within its domestic institutions and laws, implementing a March 2015 decision to revoke the territory's self-governing status. [73] | |
2017 | 18 January | Syria's lease of Khmeimim Air Base to Russia is amended from having no time limit to 49 years, renewable for subsequent 25-year periods beginning in 2066. [74] |
Syria signs a lease granting Russia sovereign jurisdiction over the naval base at the port of Tartus for 49 years, renewable for subsequent 25-year periods beginning in 2066. [75] | ||
19 January | Military forces of Senegal , Ghana , Mali , Togo , and Nigeria , members of the ECOWAS group, launch an invasion of The Gambia to enforce the results of the 2016 Gambian presidential election. | |
29 January | The Islamic Republic of The Gambia changes its name back to the Republic of The Gambia . [76] [77] | |
21 February | The unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic changes its name to the Republic of Artsakh after a constitutional referendum. [78] [79] | |
29 March | Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army complete the conquest of a 2,055 km2 (793 sq mi) occupation zone from the Islamic State and the Syrian Democratic Forces , establishing the Northern Syria Security Belt . [80] | |
9 April | Following a referendum, the partially recognized Republic of South Ossetia changes its name to the Republic of South Ossetia – the State of Alania . [81] | |
18 May | The United States establishes a 55 km (34 mi) radius around Al-Tanf effectively under its control, conducting its only attack on pro-government Syrian ground forces of the Syrian civil war to prevent their advancing into the area. | |
5 June | Montenegro joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in the alliance's seventh enlargement. | |
24 June | Egypt transfers Sanafir Island and Tiran Island to Saudi Arabia . [82] | |
20 July | Iraqi government forces, allied militias and the Peshmerga , supported by the US-led Joint Task Force and Iran , complete the reconquest of Mosul from the Islamic State . [83] | |
10 October | The Generalitat of Catalonia passes a declaration of Independence from Spain which is soon suspended on 30 October of the same year. | |
16 October | The Iraqi National Army retakes control of Kirkuk from the Kurdistan Regional Government . | |
17 October | The Syrian Democratic Forces , supported by the US-led Joint Task Force , complete the reconquest of Raqqa from the Islamic State . [84] | |
2018 | 1 January | Belgium and the Netherlands exchange territory along the Meuse River, swapping Belgian Presqu'ile de L'llal and Presqu'ile d'Eijsden for Dutch Presqu'ile Petit-Gravier; the Netherlands gains a net 0.1 km2 (0.039 sq mi). [85] [86] |
2 February | The ICJ awards the Laguna Los Portillos and its barrier beach to Nicaragua and the remainder of the disputed territory on Isla Portillos to Costa Rica . [87] | |
24 March | Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army complete the conquest from the Kurdish People's Protection Units of over 2,000 km2 (770 sq mi) of Afrin, which is added to their Northern Syria Security Belt . | |
19 April | The Kingdom of Swaziland changes its name to the Kingdom of Eswatini . [88] | |
30 April | The United Arab Emirates occupy the Yemeni archipelago of Socotra, amidst an ongoing civil war. | |
14 May | The United Arab Emirates return control of the occupied Socotra archipelago to Yemen , amidst an ongoing civil war. | |
9 July | Ethiopia ends its occupation of Badme and returns the town to Eritrea following a peace summit, ending their twenty-year border conflict. [89] | |
16 December | Georgia moves its legislative capital from Kutaisi back to Tbilisi. [90] | |
2019 | 16 January | Burundi moves its capital from Bujumbura to Gitega. [91] |
12 February | The Republic of Macedonia changes its official and constitutional name to the Republic of North Macedonia as part of the Prespa agreement (2018), under which Greece will no longer veto the country's accession to NATO and the EU. [92] [93] | |
23 March | Kazakhstan changes the name of its capital from Astana to Nur-Sultan. [94] | |
The Syrian Democratic Forces , supported by the US-led Joint Task Force and the Iraqi and Syrian governments, conquers the last territory controlled by the Islamic State in Syria or Iraq, though it continues as an insurgency. [95] | ||
29 October | Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army complete the conquest from the predominantly-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces of a 4,820 km2 (1,860 sq mi) "safe zone", expanding their Northern Syria Security Belt . [96] | |
27 November | Turkey and the Libyan Government of National Accord sign a maritime boundary treaty, establishing exclusive economic zones which are rejected by Cyprus , Egypt , France , Greece , and the United Arab Emirates . [97] |
Year | Date | Event |
---|---|---|
2020 | 31 January | The United Kingdom withdraws from the European Union , entering a transition period in which it continues under EU laws and institutions until 31 December. [98] |
27 March | North Macedonia joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in the alliance's eighth enlargement. | |
6 August | Egypt and Greece sign a maritime boundary treaty, establishing exclusive economic zones in the Mediterranean Sea which overlap with the claims made by Libya and Turkey in November 2019. [99] | |
18 August | A coup d'état overthrows the government of Mali . | |
27 September | Beginning of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War between Azerbaijan , Armenia , and the disputed Republic of Artsakh . [100] [101] | |
10 November | Armenia and Azerbaijan impose a ceasefire ending the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War; by 15 December the Republic of Artsakh surrenders over 72% of its territory to Azerbaijan, and Russian forces are deployed to the remainder. [102] [103] [104] [105] | |
2021 | 1 February | The Tatmadaw overthrows the elected government of Myanmar after baselessly alleging electoral fraud in the 2020 general election. [106] Military rule is restored after 10 years of civilian rule. Start of mass protests and a civil war. |
12 May | Azerbaijani soldiers cross several kilometers into Armenia in the provinces of Syunik and Gerharhunik, occupying about 41 square kilometers (16 sq mi) of Armenian territory. [107] [108] | |
24 May | A coup d'état overthrows the leadership of Mali . | |
25 July | The Tunisian President Kais Saied conducts a self-coup. | |
15 August | The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan collapses, while the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan governed by the Taliban restores its power in Kabul, ending the 2001–2021 War in Afghanistan. Fifteen days later, the United States Armed Forces complete their withdrawal from the country. | |
5 September | A coup d'état overthrows the government of Guinea . A military junta is established. | |
12 October | The International Court of Justice rules in favor of Somalia in its dispute with Kenya over a maritime border rich in gas and oil. Kenya does not recognize the ruling. [109] | |
25 October | The Sudanese military take control of the government in the 2021 Sudanese coup d'état. | |
3 November | Qatar and Saudi Arabia demarcate their border, expanding Qatar's territory to include the southern shore of the Khor Al Adaid. [110] | |
30 November | Barbados becomes a republic, severing ties with the British monarchy and ceasing to be a Commonwealth realm, but still remaining a part of the Commonwealth of Nations. [111] | |
2022 | 5 January | Civil unrest in Kazakhstan leads to the deployment of Collective Security Treaty Organization peacekeepers. [112] |
23 January | A coup d'état overthrows the government of Burkina Faso. | |
21 February | Russia recognizes the independence of the Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic from Ukraine , the first UN member to do so. Most countries continue to recognize these territories as part of Ukraine. [113] | |
24 February | Russia launches a full-scale invasion of Ukraine , including troops from its military crossing from Belarus and the mostly unrecognised Luhansk People's Republic and Donetsk People's Republic . [114] | |
31 May | The Republic of Turkey changes its official English name to the Republic of Türkiye. [115] | |
11 June | Denmark and Canada agree to partition the disputed Hans Island, following negotiations. [116] Both sovereign states cease to be single land border sovereign states while Greenland gains its first land border. [117] | |
26 August | Russian peacekeepers leave the Lachin corridor. Azerbaijan regains control of Zabukh, Sus, and Lachin. [118] | |
17 September | Kazakhstan changes the name of its capital from Nur-Sultan back to Astana [119] [120] | |
22 September | A series of border clashes break out between Azerbaijan and Armenia that last until 24 September. Azerbaijan occupies multiple strategic heights in the border area inside Armenia. | |
29 September | Russia recognizes the independence of Kherson Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast from Ukraine as a precursor to annexation. [121] | |
30 September | The occupied Ukrainian territories of the Kherson Oblast, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Donetsk Oblast, and Luhansk Oblast, including the mostly unrecognized Donetsk People's Republic and Luhansk People's Republic , are annexed by Russia following disputed referendums that the United Nations have deemed illegal under international law. [122] [123] At the time of annexation, Russia did not control all of the territory that it claimed, with significant portions remaining under Ukrainian control. [123] The recognition of Donetsk PR, Luhansk PR, Kherson Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast as independent states (by Russia and others) is nullified as a result of their accession to Russia. | |
A coup d'état overthrows the government of Burkina Faso , the second in the country within a year. | ||
11 October | Israel reaches an agreement with Lebanon on a US -brokered deal solving a dispute over their maritime boundaries. [124] | |
2023 | 4 April | Finland joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in the alliance's ninth enlargement. |
15 April | A war breaks out in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces . Both sides claim control over key sites, including Khartoum International Airport and the Presidential Palace. | |
7 May | Syria is readmitted to the Arab League after being suspended since 2011. [125] | |
26 July | A coup d'état overthrows the government of Niger . | |
30 August | A coup d'état overthrows the government of Gabon . | |
20 September | The unrecognized Republic of Artsakh begins negotiations to reintegrate into Azerbaijan after a renewed military offensive. | |
7 October | A war breaks out between Israel and Palestinian militant groups led by Hamas after the latter launches a large-scale invasion and offensive against Israel from the Gaza Strip . | |
27 October | Israel launches a counter-invasion of the Gaza Strip . [126] | |
6 December | The unrecognized State of Chinland declares independence from Myanmar after the Chin National Front ratifies their constitution. Camp Victoria is the capital. [127] [128] [129] | |
2024 | 1 January | The Republic of Artsakh is dissolved and reintegrates into Azerbaijan . Stepanakert yields to Baku as the capital. [130] |
7 March | Sweden joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in the alliance's tenth enlargement. [131] | |
1 April | Puntland announces that it will temporarily operate as a functionally independent state from Somalia amid a dispute over Somali constitutional changes. [132] Garoowe is the capital. | |
19 April | Armenia cedes four abandoned villages along the border with Azerbaijan : Bağanıs Ayrım, Aşağı Əskipara, Xeyrimli, and Qızılhacılı. [133] | |
25 April | A transitional government is established in Haiti after a gang war forces the resignation of the former prime minister following the assassination of Jovenel Moïse in 2021. [134] | |
6 July | Officials from Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali meet in Niamey to sign a confederation treaty for the Alliance of Sahel States after recent takeovers by military juntas. [135] | |
1 October | Israel launches an invasion of southern Lebanon in an escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. [136] | |
3 October | The United Kingdom agrees to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius , excepting the Diego Garcia airbase, which will remain under joint British-American control for at least 99 years. The agreement is subject to finalization by a formal treaty; however, both sides have committed to completing this quickly. [137] |
The Azerbaijani Armed Forces is the military of the Republic of Azerbaijan. It was re-established according to the country's Law of the Armed Forces on 9 October 1991. The original Azerbaijan Democratic Republic's armed forces were dissolved after Azerbaijan was absorbed into the Soviet Union as the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic from 28 April 1920. After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991–92, Azerbaijan's armed forces were reformed based on Soviet bases and equipment left on Azerbaijani soil.
Nagorno-Karabakh is a region in Azerbaijan, covering the southeastern stretch of the Lesser Caucasus mountain range. Part of the greater region of Karabakh, it spans the area between Lower Karabakh and Syunik. Its terrain mostly consists of mountains and forestland.
Stepanakert or Khankendi is a ghost city in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. The city was under the control and the capital city of the breakaway Republic of Artsakh prior to the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in the region. The city is located in a valley on the eastern slopes of the Karabakh mountain range, on the left bank of the Qarqarçay (Karkar) river.
Artsakh, officially the Republic of Artsakh or the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, was a breakaway state in the South Caucasus whose territory was internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. Between 1991 and 2023, Artsakh controlled parts of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic, including its capital Stepanakert. It had been an enclave within Azerbaijan from the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war until the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive, when the Azerbaijani military took control over the remaining territory controlled by Artsakh. Its only overland access route to Armenia after the 2020 war was via the five kilometres (3.1 mi)–wide Lachin corridor, which was placed under the supervision of Russian peacekeeping forces.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is an ethnic and territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh, inhabited mostly by ethnic Armenians until 2023, and seven surrounding districts, inhabited mostly by Azerbaijanis until their expulsion during the 1990s. The Nagorno-Karabakh region was entirely claimed by and partially controlled by the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, but was recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan gradually re-established control over Nagorno-Karabakh region and the seven surrounding districts.
Serzh Azati Sargsyan is an Armenian politician who served as the third President of Armenia from 2008 to 2018, and twice as the Prime Minister of Armenia from 2007 to 2008 and again from 17 to 23 April 2018, when he was forced to resign in the 2018 Armenian revolution.
The Republic of Artsakh was a republic with limited recognition in the South Caucasus region. The Republic of Artsakh controlled most of the territory of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast. It was recognized only by three other non-UN member states, Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Transnistria. The rest of the international community recognized Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan. In November 2012, a member of Uruguay's foreign relations committee stated that his country could recognize Nagorno-Karabakh's independence. In 2012, Armenia and Tuvalu established diplomatic relations, which led to speculation of possible recognition of Artsakh by Tuvalu. In October 2012, the Australian state of New South Wales recognized Nagorno-Karabakh. In September 2014, the Basque Parliament in Spain adopted a motion supporting Artsakh's right to self-determination and in November 2014, the Parliament of Navarre, also in Spain, issued a statement supporting Artsakh's inclusion in taking part in settlement negotiations.
Ruben Karleni Vardanyan is a Russian-Armenian oligarch, former adviser to Vladimir Putin, and a politician who served as the State Minister of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), an unrecognized state in the South Caucasus, from 4 November 2022 until 23 February 2023. Vardanyan continued his support and work in Artsakh following his dismissal from the post of State Minister in 2023. Vardanyan has engaged in efforts to promote economic and social advancement in Armenia and Republic of Artsakh, focusing on long-term development projects.
Arayik Vladimiri Harutyunyan is an Armenian politician who served as the fourth president of the Republic of Artsakh from May 2020 to September 2023. Under his predecessor Bako Sahakyan, he served as the sixth and last Prime Minister from 2007 until the abolishment of that position in 2017 and as the first State Minister of the Republic of Artsakh from 2017 until his resignation in 2018. Harutyunyan led Artsakh through the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War with Azerbaijan, during which the republic lost most of the territory under its control. He resigned on 1 September 2023 in the midst of the Azerbaijani blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Bilateral relations between modern-day Armenia and the Russian Federation were established on 3 April 1992, though Russia has been an important actor in Armenia since the early 19th century. The two countries' historic relationship has its roots in the Russo-Persian War of 1826 to 1828 between the Russian Empire and Qajar Persia after which Eastern Armenia was ceded to Russia. Moreover, Russia was viewed as a protector of the Christian subjects in the Ottoman Empire, including the Armenians.
Russia and Azerbaijan are de facto and de jure allies in many different aspects, including military. Bilateral relations exist between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation. The Embassy of Azerbaijan is located in Moscow, Russia. The Embassy of Russia is located in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Lachin corridor was a mountain road in Azerbaijan that linked Armenia and Karabakh.
Ilham Heydar oghlu Aliyev is an Azerbaijani politician who is the fourth and current president of Azerbaijan. The son and second child of former Azerbaijani president Heydar Aliyev, Aliyev became the country's president on 31 October 2003, after a two-month term as prime minister of Azerbaijan, through a presidential election defined by irregularities shortly before his father's death. He was reelected for a second term in 2008 and was allowed to run in elections indefinitely in 2013, 2018 and 2024 due to the 2009 constitutional referendum, which removed term limits for presidents. Throughout his electoral campaign, Aliyev was a member of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party, which he has headed since 2005.
The Armenia–Azerbaijan border is the international border between the Republic of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan. Estimates of the border's length vary from 996 km (619 mi) to 1,007.1 km (625.8 mi). European routes E002 and E117 cross the border.
The Wagner Group, officially known as PMC Wagner, is a Russian state-funded private military company (PMC) controlled until 2023 by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russia's president Vladimir Putin. The Wagner Group has used infrastructure of the Russian Armed Forces. Evidence suggests that Wagner has been used as a proxy by the Russian government, allowing it to have plausible deniability for military operations abroad, and hiding the true casualties of Russia's foreign interventions.
The military forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been engaged in a border conflict since 12 May 2021, when Azerbaijani soldiers crossed several kilometers into Armenia in the provinces of Syunik and Gegharkunik. Despite international calls for withdrawal from the European Parliament, France, Iran, and the United States, Azerbaijan has maintained its presence on Armenian soil, occupying at least 215 square kilometres (83 sq mi) of internationally recognized Armenian territory. This occupation follows a pattern of Azerbaijan provoking cross-border fights and instigating ceasefire violations when its government is unhappy with the pace of negotiations with Armenia.
The Zangezur corridor is a concept for a transport corridor which, if implemented, would give Azerbaijan unimpeded access to Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic without Armenian checkpoints via Armenia's Syunik Province and, in a broad sense, for the geopolitical corridor that would connect Turkey to the rest of the Turkic world thereby "uniting it". The concept was not part of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement but was introduced to geopolitical lexicon later by Ilham Aliyev. It has since been promoted by Azerbaijan and Turkey, while Armenia has steadily objected to it, asserting that "corridor logic" deviates from the ceasefire statement, and that it is a form of propaganda.
The blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh was an event in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The region was disputed between Azerbaijan and the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, which had an ethnic Armenian population and was supported by neighbouring Armenia, until the dissolution of Republic of Artsakh on 28 September 2023.
By March 26, the annexation was essentially complete, and Russia began returning seized military hardware to Ukraine.
The latest conflict broke out on 27 September.
On September 27, 2020, the three-decades-long Nagorno-Karabakh conflict erupted into war.