Yugoslavia split into what states? How many countries Yugoslavia has split into. How to find the now defunct country of Yugoslavia on the map

Attention! Kosovo still remains only a partially recognized state, and Russia does not recognize it. But since this state actually exists (like the DPR, Nagorno-Karabakh, Taiwan or Somaliland), exercises border control and establishes its own order in a certain territory, it is more convenient to call it a separate state.

Short review

People like to compare Yugoslavia with the Soviet Union, and its collapse - with the collapse of the USSR. I will take this comparison as a basis and briefly describe the main peoples of the former Yugoslavia by analogy with the peoples of the former Union.

Serbs are like Russians, an imperial-forming Orthodox people who united everyone, and then did not want to let go. The Serbs also believed that the whole world hated them, that they were a stronghold of true faith and an outpost against the pernicious influence of the West. But after a decade of bloody wars with their neighbors, they somehow calmed down, stopped believing that the main thing in life was the greatness of Serbia and the protection of the Serbian people, and began to organize their country. In 2000, the Serbian dictator Slobodan Milosevic was overthrown, a sane government came to power, and since then Serbia has been developing like all normal countries.

Serbian priest and his friend.Neighborhoods of Mokra Gora (Serbia)

Montenegrins are like Belarusians. A calmer and less preoccupied people with a great mission, close to the Serbs so much that it is even difficult to say what is the difference between them. Only Montenegrins (unlike Belarusians) have a sea, but (again, unlike Belarusians) do not have their own language. Montenegrins have been with Serbs longer than others. Even when the Serbs finally recognized that Yugoslavia had collapsed, the Montenegrins formed a confederate state with them - the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. And only in 2006, at a referendum, slightly more than half of the Montenegrins decided to leave the confederation and form a new state.

Montenegrin trucker. On the way from Cetinje to Kotor (Montenegro).

Croats are like Ukrainians, or rather, even Western Ukrainians. Although the Croats are close in language and culture to Serbs and Montenegrins, they have long adopted Catholicism, considered themselves part of Europe and have always considered themselves above any Orthodox cattle. They even had their own analogue of "Bandera" - the so-called "Ustashi" (Croatian fascists who helped Hitlers) and their analogue "Novorossiya" (the so-called Serbian Krajina - a region of Croatia inhabited by Serbs and proclaimed independence in the early 1990s. ). However, the Croats more quickly and more successfully than the Ukrainians crushed separatism and moved to Europe. Croatia has already become a member of the European Union and looks like a fairly prosperous and civilized country.

Croatian police officers and saleswoman. Zagreb (Croatia)

Slovenes are like our Balts. Among the Yugoslavs, they have always been a more developed, civilized and European-oriented people. Even the Serbs seem to agree with this, so it was relatively easy to give them independence. Slovenes have been in the European Union and the Eurozone for a long time, they have a clean, pleasant, developed and safe country.

Former mayor of the Slovenian town of Kanal and director of the Hitchhiking Museum in Bled (Slovenia)

It is difficult to compare Bosnia and Herzegovina with anything, because in the history of the USSR there was no similar conflict. However, this can be imagined. Imagine purely hypothetically that in the early 1990s in Kazakhstan, the Russian population of the north of the country proclaimed an independent republic and started a war with the south, inhabited mainly by Kazakhs. At the same time, the Ukrainians living in Kazakhstan remembered their independence and in the places of their compact residence began to fight both the Kazakhs and the Russians. Later, the country would be divided into two autonomous parts - Russian and Kazakh-Ukrainian, and in the Russian part no one would still recognize the government of Kazakhstan, hang Russian flags and wait for a reason to finally separate. Something like this happened in Bosnia: first, a mutual war between Serbs, Bosnian Muslims and Croats, and then - the division of the country into two parts - Serbian and Muslim-Croatian.

City tram passengers. Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Macedonians - I don't even know what. One could compare them with the Moldovans or Georgians - also Orthodox peoples living in small and poor countries. But Moldova and Georgia fell apart into several parts, and Macedonia still retained its integrity. Therefore, let's say that Macedonia is like Kyrgyzstan, only Orthodox. The Serbs did not even fight here: Macedonia was seceded - and God bless her. The Yugoslavian war swept here in the early 2000s: in 2001, clashes broke out in the country between the Macedonian majority and the Albanian minority, which demanded greater autonomy. Well, just like in Kyrgyzstan, there were several clashes between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz.

Our friend is an Albanian from the Macedonian city of Tetovo (on the right) and his friend

Well, Kosovo is obviously Chechnya. A region that officially could not secede from Serbia, but which nevertheless resisted for a long time and stubbornly. The result was formally different (Kosovo achieved de facto independence, but Chechnya did not), but both there and there peace and tranquility were established, and you can go there completely fearlessly.

Street corn vendor in Pristina (Kosovo)

Albania does not belong to Yugoslavia, but has always been close to this region. Josip Broz Tito, the leader of socialist Yugoslavia, even wanted to annex Albania to Yugoslavia as another union republic. There is a version that he allowed the Albanians to live in Kosovo in order to show them the benefits of living in his country, after which the whole of Albania in a single impulse was to enter Yugoslavia. As a result, Albania has never been to yugoslavia, but has always been considered a close-minded and eternally poor neighbor. In general, Albania for Yugoslavia is roughly like Mongolia for the Soviet Union.

Albanian girl. Durres city (Albania)

For a deeper immersion in the history of Yugoslavia and Yugoslavia, I recommend Leonid Mlechin's wonderful documentary "The Yugoslav Tragedy". The film has no bias towards the Pro-Serb or anti-Serb side, does not paint anyone white and fluffy and quite honestly tries to tell about the time when people in the former Yugoslavia went crazy and started killing each other.

Relation to the past

Yugoslavia was a very developed country by socialist standards. It had the highest standard of living among the socialist countries, not counting the GDR. In Russia, the older generation can still remember that a trip to Yugoslavia was almost equated with a trip to a capitalist country.

Then, in the early 90s, there was war, economic downturn and unemployment. Therefore, many people still treat the socialist past normally and even with nostalgia. It is clear that socialism is remembered more warmly in less developed countries (Bosnia, Serbia, etc.), and in more developed countries (Slovenia and Croatia), it is more likely to be treated negatively.

Graffiti on the wall in the city of Cetinje (Montenegro)

Even before the trip, I heard that the Balkan peoples still respect Josip Broz Tito, the leader of Yugoslavia in 1945-1980, despite the fact that in the early 1990s. so actively pulled his legacy. This is true - in many cities in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, including Croatian, Macedonian and Bosnian, there are streets and Tito squares.

Although Tito was a dictator, he was soft by the standards of the 20th century. He carried out repressions only against his political opponents, and not against entire ethnic groups or social groups. In this regard, Tito is more like Brezhnev or Franco than Hitler and Stalin. Therefore, in the people's memory, his image is rather positive.

Tomb of Josip Broz Tito at the Museum of the History of Yugoslavia in Belgrade (Serbia)

It is interesting that Tito - the son of a Croat and a Slovenian - actively mixed the population, encouraged inter-ethnic marriages and coexistence of different peoples. His goal was to create a new nation - "Yugoslavs". We have met such people several times - those who were born of mixed marriages or are married to a representative of another nation. But he failed to complete the case. When the country collapsed, it turned out that the Yugoslavs did not exist, just as there was no "Soviet people", but there are different peoples.

Travnik town (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Then came the "Yugoslav War" - a series of armed conflicts in Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Macedonia. It was the bloodiest war on the European continent since the Second World War, in which more than 100 thousand people died. The level of mutual hatred of the peoples, who had recently lived peacefully next to each other, increased to an extreme degree. It's amazing how quickly people are able to divide into "us" and "strangers" and violently destroy each other. Unfortunately, there are always gopniks who will only be glad that it is possible to kill, rob and rape, and even for a reason, but for a high idea - say, for Allah or for the Orthodox faith.

People in the Balkans became obsessed with ethnic and religious hatred very quickly, but, fortunately, they came to their senses just as quickly. The conflict did not turn into an eternally smoldering one, like in some Palestine or Nagorno-Karabakh. When the main cannibalistic troglodytes left power, the new governments quickly tuned in to constructive cooperation. For example, in 2003 the presidents of Croatia and Serbia officially apologized to each other for what their predecessors had done.

City of Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

And this is most pleasing when traveling in the former Yugoslavia - the former enmity is almost forgotten and people gradually got used to the fact that not enemies live nearby, but exactly the same people. Today Serbs, Croats, Bosnian Muslims coexist peacefully and go to visit each other, on business, to visit relatives. The worst thing that I was told is that some car with Serbian numbers in Croatia can scratch the door.

Probably the same feeling would have been in Western Europe in the 1960s. The war seems to have taken place quite recently, but there is no mutual hatred and people are worried about completely different issues.

True, some tensions are still felt in the Serbian regions outside Serbia. Serbs living in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina, it seems, have not yet come to terms with the fact that they have become a national minority in a foreign state. Perhaps the same is happening with the Serbs in Croatia. They do not like and do not recognize these new states, they hang Serbian flags everywhere and scold both the government of their current states and the Serbian government (they say, Serbia has betrayed and forgotten them). But even in these places it is now safe - for example, Serbs can safely travel to Albanian areas and vice versa. So let's hope that sooner or later all these contradictions will be resolved.

Bridge over the Serbian and Albanian parts of Mitrovica (Kosovo)

Economy and level of development

What is most surprising about Yugoslavia is how good its constituent countries look. Of course, they are far from Western Europe, but still they are noticeably ahead of the countries of the former Soviet Union. There are very good roads, including high-speed autobahns, good and beautiful houses rise in the villages, all the fields are sown, new trams and buses run in the cities, in the cities there are clean and comfortable streets.

Sleeping area of \u200b\u200bthe city of Novi Sad (Serbia)

A characteristic feature is that in the former Yugoslavia it is almost everywhere very clean. In cities, on different surfaces, like ours, there is no layer of dirt or dust; you can almost always sit on a curb or steps without fear for the cleanliness of your pants. Clouds of dust do not rise from passing cars, and on suburban roads there is no dirty roadside, so you can safely put your backpack when you catch a car.

In short, although the Yugoslavs are also Slavs and also survived socialism, for some reason they know simple rules thanks to which cities remain clean. Those interested in this topic can read Varlamov's post "How to make sidewalks correctly" and Lebedev's post "Russian drist"; it describes in detail and clearly why our cities are dirty, but European ones are not.

Berat City Center (Albania)

The following picture is walking on the Balkan Internet.

Translation: “In this triangle ships and airplanes disappear. And in this triangle, young people, investments, happiness and the future disappear "

It seems to me that the Balkans (if they painted the picture) are too self-critical. All these countries are developing and looking pretty good. Especially if we compare it with our Slavic triangle Russia - Ukraine - Belarus, where investments and the future have really disappeared over the past few years.

The poorest country in the region is Albania, but it looks relatively good too. The outback there is generally much better than the Russian one. The situation is somewhat better in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Serbia and Kosovo. It is even better in Croatia, and very good in Slovenia.

Village in eastern Serbia

People and mentality

The Balkans are mostly populated by Slavs who have survived several decades of socialism. Therefore, in their character you can find a lot in common with us. As I said, people here are not particularly religious, and the fascination with Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Islam has become more fashionable than a deeply conscious choice. The Albanian with whom we stayed in Pristina convinced us that all the problems in Europe are from Muslims, and if it were his will, he would have expelled all Muslims from Europe. To my question: "Aren't the Albanians Muslims?" he replied: “Come on, these are European Muslims! We are completely different, we have no religious fanaticism! "

Rules of conduct in the mosque. Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

People here are somewhat more disregard for the law than Western Europeans. This, of course, has its advantages for the traveler - for example, the car can stop and pick you up in a place where stopping is prohibited. But there are also disadvantages - for example, the same car in the city will park on the sidewalk and interfere with pedestrians.

Our Belgrade acquaintance, a completely pro-Western guy with a European mindset, nevertheless said that you don't have to pay for travel on the bus, “and if they come to check tickets, go to the door, stand with your back to the controllers and do not react to their comments - they are likely to fall behind quickly. " A very familiar attitude towards established rules.

It saddens that many are beginning to scold America (they say, she has quarreled everyone in the Balkans) and praise Putin (here, they say, a normal leader, we need one). Such an infantile attitude to politics is a little annoying - like one big uncle came and ruined everything, but another big uncle should come and fix everything, and we are not at all in business here.

Putin, as usual, is loved here much more than in Russia itself - and not only Serbs, but even some Croats, Albanians and representatives of other nationalities. One would think that they were saying this out of politeness, but no - when we replied that we ourselves were cool about Putin, people were surprised. How can you not love him, he fights so bravely with America? True, T-shirts with Putin are sold only where Serbs live, in other places it is somehow not customary to demonstrate this.

Sale of T-shirts in Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

In general, with the Yugoslavs, there is almost always a common language and topics for conversation. Even if people have completely different political views, but, so to speak, the cultural code is still common: they understand our problems, and we understand their problems. You travel around the former Yugoslavia, almost as if you were on your native land, but which looks and develops much better.

The breakup of Yugoslavia became one of the important crises of the last century. Despite the fact that now there are no special claims on the part of this state, the crisis has played a major role in the foreign policy situation, which continues to this day.

Let's try to figure it out: what are the reasons for this event, how did it develop, the main positions of the participants in the crisis, how has the world map changed after this "war"?

How many countries was Yugoslavia divided into? How did American intervention affect this process?

List of countries of the former Yugoslavia and their capitals

Yugoslavia (the current capital of the country - Belgrade) was part of the Soviet Union as one of the republics - the SFRY.

Information about its member states and their capitals, areas and population is shown in the table:

In addition, this territory was inhabited by people of different nationalities. The main majority were Serbs. In addition to them, the population included Croats, Albanians, Montenegrins, Macedonians and Slovenes.

Reasons for the collapse of Yugoslavia

Why did the Balkan crisis happen?

The main factors that historians highlight:

death of the first president (former leader) Tito;
the collapse of the USSR and the subsequent “wear” of the socialist system;
the flourishing of nationalism throughout the world.

As another prerequisite for the split, many scientists attribute the wrong internal policy of the multinational state. According to the constitution of Yugoslavia, at that time the authorities of the republics could create groups within their "possessions".

The beginning of the collapse

This story began at the same time as the collapse of the USSR, in 1991. 2006 is considered the date of complete disintegration. What happened?

A civil war broke out, during which 4 sovereign units separated from Yugoslavia. Only Serbia and Montenegro remained, the rest became independent states.

Post-war time

It would seem that the conflict should end, the division of countries should come to naught. However, hostilities broke out due to an external factor.

Under the influence of NATO, major bloody war dramas took place in Serbia and Croatia, in which more than 2 million people were injured. And only after the agreement signed in 1995, the society recognized the secession of 4 republics from Yugoslavia.

Despite all the UN peacekeeping actions, at the end of the 20th century, extremist uprisings of the Albanians broke out, which resulted in the death of another 0.5 million people.

The "Kosovo crisis" still remains an unresolved problem at the beginning of the 21st century.

Division of the territory at the end of the 20th century

By the end of the 20th century, Yugoslavia was divided into 5 countries. But the financial division of property dragged on for quite a long period of time.

Only in 2004 was an agreement concluded, which indicated the countries and the amounts prescribed by them. Moreover, a large amount went to Serbia (about 39% of the total assets).

Many of our domestic historians believe that such a division is unfair, because the USSR had huge debts to the foreign branches of Yugoslav companies. Therefore, in 2006 the Russian Federation paid this amount.

Yugoslavia map: before and after the collapse

The first picture shows the map of Yugoslavia before it was divided into separate independent states.

The second picture shows a map of Yugoslavia with new states.

What countries has the country split into

Five states into which Yugoslavia disintegrated by 2003:

Croatia;
Bosnia and Herzegovina;
Slovenia;
Macedonia;
FRY (successor to the former multinational state):
- - Slovenia;
  - Montenegro.

Yugoslavia became finally divided when Montenegro left the FRY in June 2006.

America's intervention

From the very beginning of the Balkan crisis, America actively intervened in this process. Her policy was aimed at using force (on Serbia) and supporting 2 opposition parties. This led to the impossibility of peaceful regulation of the conflict.

In 1995, with the support of NATO, hostilities were unleashed in Serbia and Croatia, during which more than 1 million people were killed and about 2 million were injured.

At the end of the same year, at the initiative of American diplomats, an agreement was signed on the withdrawal of 4 countries from Yugoslavia and the cessation of hostilities throughout the territory of the former multinational state.

At the end of the twentieth century, America played an important role in the "fight against extremists", causing enormous damage with its numerous raids, which prompted the withdrawal of Montenegro from the FRY.

Of particular importance was NATO's intervention in the Kosovo crisis. Until now, this conflict remains unresolved.

Conclusion

Despite the difficult geopolitical situation, Russia is now pursuing a diplomatic policy with the countries of the former Yugoslavia. In addition, technological progress is outlined in almost all spheres of life of these independent states.

It should be noted that the population of Yugoslavia was very diverse. Slovenes, Serbs, Croats, Macedonians, Hungarians, Romanians, Turks, Bosnians, Albanians, Montenegrins lived on its territory. All of them were unevenly distributed over 6 republics of Yugoslavia: Bosnia and Herzegovina (one republic), Macedonia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Croatia, Serbia.

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

This was followed by a longer (1991-1995) war for Croatian independence. Its secession from Yugoslavia was followed by armed conflicts within the newly independent republic between the Serbian and Croatian populations. The Croatian War claimed the lives of over 20 thousand people. 12 thousand - from the Croatian side (moreover, 4.5 thousand - civilians). Hundreds of thousands of buildings were destroyed, and all property damage is estimated at $ 27 billion.

Almost in parallel with this, another civil war broke out inside the crumbling Yugoslavia - the Bosnian (1992-1995). Several ethnic groups took part in it at once: Serbs, Croats, Bosnian Muslims and the so-called Muslim autonomists living in the west of Bosnia. Over 3 years, more than 100 thousand people were killed. Material damage is colossal: 2,000 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.

In the war-torn territories, concentration camps were opened (on both sides). In the course of hostilities, there were egregious incidents of terror: mass rapes of Muslim women, ethnic cleansing, during which several thousand Bosnian Muslims were killed. All those killed were civilians. Croatian militants shot even 3-month-old children.

Proletarian internationalism - it was this ideology that reigned in the territory of the Yugoslav Republic in the 40-60s.

Popular unrest was successfully suppressed by the dictatorship of I.B. Tito. However, already in the early 60s, the supporters of the reforms increased their influence on the masses and the republican movement on the territory of such modern countries as Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia began to gain momentum. This went on for about a decade, until the dictator came to understand his precarious position. The defeat of the Serbian liberals was preceded by the fall of the "Croatian Spring". The same fate awaited the Slovenian "technocrats".

The middle of the 70s has come. On the basis of national hostility, relations between the populations of Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia have worsened. And May 1980 brought for someone a sad, but for someone a joyful event about the death of the dictator Tito. The presidential office was abolished and power was concentrated in the hands of a new authorized body called collective leadership, which did not receive the recognition of the people.

Reasons for the collapse of the SFRY

1981 year. Intensification of conflicts in Kosovo between Serbs and Albanians. The first clashes began, news of which soon spread throughout the world. This is one of the main reasons for the future collapse of the republic.

Another reason for the collapse of statehood was the SANI Memorandum published in the Belgrade newspaper press. The Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts analyzed the political situation of the republic and compared them with the demands of the Serbian population.

The document became a manifesto, which was skillfully used by Serbian nationalists. However, the official authorities criticized its content, and it was supported by other republics that were part of Yugoslavia.

Serbs rallied under political slogans calling for the protection of Kosovo. And on June 28, 1989, Slobodan Milosevic turned to them and called on them to be loyal to their homeland, not paying attention to the difficulties and humiliation associated with cultural and economic inequality. After the rallies, riots broke out, which eventually led to bloodshed. Ethnic disputes led to military intervention by NATO.

Today, the majority is of the opinion that it was NATO troops that served as the main impetus for the disintegration of the state. However, this is only one of the stages of the disintegration, which has been going on for decades. As a result of the collapse, independent states were formed and the division of property began, which lasted until 2004. The Serbs are recognized as the worst victims in this prolonged bloody war, and Yugoslavia collapsed on the basis of national hatred and outside interference from the countries concerned - this is the opinion of most historians.

In 1992, Yugoslavia broke up. Which states? How many are there? Why did the breakup take place? Not every European can answer these and other questions.

Even residents of neighboring countries can hardly describe the events of the 90s of the last century. The Yugoslav conflict was so bloody and intricate that without proper analysis it is difficult to understand the processes that took place there. The collapse of this Balkan country is considered the bloodiest conflict in Europe since World War II.

Prerequisites

1992 was not the first time Yugoslavia disintegrated. Many did not remember what states and how much it fell apart in the past. But it was then, on the eve of World War II, that the bomb was planted under the future country. Until the early 1920s, the Balkan Slavs were under the yoke of Austria-Hungary. The lands were divided into different areas. After the defeat of Austria-Hungary in the First World War and its subsequent collapse, the Slavs gained freedom and created their own state. It united almost all territories from Albania to Bulgaria. Initially, all peoples lived in peace.

However, the Balkan Slavs were never able to become a single ethnic group. Due to a number of reasons, including low internal migration, the country's relatively small population was divided into five or six ethnic groups. National disagreements erupted from time to time, but did not lead to sharp conflicts. The country developed slowly. After all, the local authorities had no experience in conducting an independent policy.

First decay

When a new war broke out, the country sided with the anti-Hitler coalition. And in 1941 Yugoslavia disintegrated. Which states to divide the kingdom into, the Nazis decided.

The Nazis, in full accordance with the well-known principle of "divide and rule", decided to play on the national differences among the Balkan Slavs. Within a few weeks, the territory of the country was completely occupied by the Axis troops. The state of Yugoslavia collapsed. On which states to divide the country, it was decided on April 21. As a result, the independent Croatian state, Serbia and Montenegro were formed. The rest of the country was annexed by Italy, the Third Reich, Hungary and Albania.

Croatian nationalists supported the Germans from the first days. Subsequently, a partisan movement developed on the territory of the country. The war was fought not only against the Germans, but also against their Croatian servants. To which the latter responded with mass genocide of the Serbs. Albanian collaborators also staged ethnic cleansing.

After the war

When the war ended, the new Federal State of Yugoslavia was formed.

At the same time, the new socialist government deliberately drew borders so that they did not correspond to ethnic settlement. That is, on the territory of each republic there were enclaves with a population that did not represent the titular nation. Such a system was supposed to balance interethnic contradictions and reduce the influence of separatism. Initially, the plan yielded positive results. But he played a cruel joke when Yugoslavia disintegrated. It was already clear in the fall of 1991 into which states the federal republic would decompose. As soon as Josip Tito died, nationalists came to power in all the republics. They began to kindle the fire of hatred.

How Yugoslavia fell apart, into which states and how was it destroyed

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, socialist regimes began to be overthrown throughout Europe. A deep economic crisis began in Yugoslavia. Local representatives of the elite sought to concentrate more power in their hands. They wanted to achieve this through nationalist populism. As a result, by 1990, nationalist parties came to power in all the republics. In every region where representatives of different nationalities lived, minorities began to demand secession or autonomy. In Croatia, despite the huge number of Serbs, the authorities have banned the Serbian language. Serbian cultural figures began to be persecuted.

Day of rage

The day of the beginning of the war is considered the riots at the Maksimir stadium, when Serbian and Croatian fans staged a massacre right during the game. A few weeks later, the first republic, Slovenia, leaves the country. Ljubljana becomes the capital of the independent state. The central leadership does not recognize independence and sends in troops.

Fighting clashes between local armed groups and the Yugoslav army begin. In ten days, the command withdraws the soldiers from Slovenia.

How Yugoslavia fell apart, into which states and capitals

Macedonia was the next to secede, with its capital located in Skopje. And then Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia also seceded. Serbia and Montenegro entered into a new alliance.

So, Yugoslavia split into 6 states. It was unclear which of them were considered legitimate and which were not. Indeed, in addition to the "main" powers, there were many semi-independent enclaves. This happened due to sharp ethnic contradictions.

I remembered old grievances. To protect their national interests, several regions of Croatia inhabited by Serbs declare independence. The Croatian authorities issue weapons to the nationalists and begin the formation of the guard. The Serbs are doing the same. Conflict breaks out. The Croatian army is organizing genocide of Serbs, trying to expel them from the country.

Similar processes are starting in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Riots are taking place in the capital Sarajevo. Local Muslims are arming themselves. They are supported by Albanian and Arab Islamists. The Serbian and Croatian communities are armed to defend their rights. These territories require secession from the federation. War breaks out in Bosnia. The bloodiest clashes took place here. Another hot spot was Serbian Krajina, where Croatian troops tried to reclaim Serb-inhabited territory.

NATO's role in the conflict

In Bosnia, the Serbs managed to defend their lands and even advance to Sarajevo. However, then NATO forces entered the war. Together with Croatian and Muslim militants, they managed to suppress the military advantage of the Serbs, to push them back.

Uranium ammunition was used in the bombing. Due to radiation exposure, at least three hundred civilians died.

The Serbs were unable to fight modern NATO aircraft. After all, they had at their disposal only the old air defense systems that Yugoslavia "left" to them when it collapsed. The Americans were now deciding which states to divide the former republic into.