Cyprus
A former British colony, Cyprus became independent in 1960
following years of resistance to British rule. Tensions between the
Greek Cypriot majority and Turkish Cypriot minority came to a head
in December 1963, when violence broke out in the capital of Nicosia.
Despite the deployment of UN peacekeepers in 1964, sporadic
intercommunal violence continued forcing most Turkish Cypriots into
enclaves throughout the island. In 1974, a Greek
Government-sponsored attempt to seize control of Cyprus was met by
military intervention from Turkey, which soon controlled more than a
third of the island. In 1983, the Turkish-held area declared itself
the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus," but it is recognized only
by Turkey. The latest two-year round of UN-brokered talks - between
the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities to
reach an agreement to reunite the divided island - ended when the
Greek Cypriots rejected the UN settlement plan in an April 2004
referendum. The entire island entered the EU on 1 May 2004, although
the EU acquis - the body of common rights and obligations - applies
only to the areas under direct Republic of Cyprus control, and is
suspended in the areas administered by Turkish Cypriots. However,
individual Turkish Cypriots able to document their eligibility for
Republic of Cyprus citizenship legally enjoy the same rights
accorded to other citizens of European Union states. Nicosia
continues to oppose EU efforts to establish direct trade and
economic links to north Cyprus as a way of encouraging the Turkish
Cypriot community to continue to support reunification.
Czech Republic
Following the First World War, the closely related
Czechs and Slovaks of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to
form Czechoslovakia. During the interwar years, the new country's
leaders were frequently preoccupied with meeting the demands of
other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably the
Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II,
a truncated Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of
influence. In 1968, an invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the
efforts of the country's leaders to liberalize Communist party rule
and create "socialism with a human face." Anti-Soviet demonstrations
the following year ushered in a period of harsh repression. With the
collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia regained its
freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993,
the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national
components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic
joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004.
Denmark
Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north
European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation
that is participating in the general political and economic
integration of Europe. It joined NATO in 1949 and the EEC (now the
EU) in 1973. However, the country has opted out of certain elements
of the European Union's Maastricht Treaty, including the European
Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), European defense cooperation, and
issues concerning certain justice and home affairs.
Dhekelia
By terms of the 1960 Treaty of Establishment that created
the independent Republic of Cyprus, the UK retained full sovereignty
and jurisdiction over two areas of almost 254 square kilometers -
Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The larger of these is the Dhekelia Sovereign
Base Area, which is also referred to as the Eastern Sovereign Base
Area.
Djibouti
The French Territory of the Afars and the Issas became
Djibouti in 1977. Hassan Gouled APTIDON installed an authoritarian
one-party state and proceeded to serve as president until 1999.
Unrest among the Afars minority during the 1990s led to a civil war
that ended in 2001 following the conclusion of a peace accord
between Afar rebels and the Issa-dominated government. In 1999,
Djibouti's first multi-party presidential elections resulted in the
election of Ismail Omar GUELLEH; he was re-elected to a second and
final term in 2005. Djibouti occupies a strategic geographic
location at the mouth of the Red Sea and serves as an important
transshipment location for goods entering and leaving the east
African highlands. The present leadership favors close ties to
France, which maintains a significant military presence in the
country, but is also developing stronger ties with the US. Djibouti
hosts the only US military base in sub-Saharan Africa and is a
front-line state in the global war on terrorism.
Dominica
Dominica was the last of the Caribbean islands to be
colonized by Europeans due chiefly to the fierce resistance of the
native Caribs. France ceded possession to Great Britain in 1763,
which made the island a colony in 1805. In 1980, two years after
independence, Dominica's fortunes improved when a corrupt and
tyrannical administration was replaced by that of Mary Eugenia
CHARLES, the first female prime minister in the Caribbean, who
remained in office for 15 years. Some 3,000 Carib Indians still
living on Dominica are the only pre-Columbian population remaining
in the eastern Caribbean.
Dominican Republic
Explored and claimed by Christopher COLUMBUS on
his first voyage in 1492, the island of Hispaniola became a
springboard for Spanish conquest of the Caribbean and the American
mainland. In 1697, Spain recognized French dominion over the western
third of the island, which in 1804 became Haiti. The remainder of
the island, by then known as Santo Domingo, sought to gain its own
independence in 1821, but was conquered and ruled by the Haitians
for 22 years; it finally attained independence as the Dominican
Republic in 1844. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to
the Spanish Empire, but two years later they launched a war that
restored independence in 1865. A legacy of unsettled, mostly
non-representative rule followed, capped by the dictatorship of
Rafael Leonidas TRUJILLO from 1930-1961. Juan BOSCH was elected
president in 1962, but was deposed in a military coup in 1963. In
1965, the United States led an intervention in the midst of a civil
war sparked by an uprising to restore BOSCH. In 1966, Joaquin
BALAGUER defeated BOSCH in an election to become president. BALAGUER
maintained a tight grip on power for most of the next 30 years when
international reaction to flawed elections forced him to curtail his
term in 1996. Since then, regular competitive elections have been
held in which opposition candidates have won the presidency. Former
President (1996-2000) Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna won election to a
second term in 2004 following a constitutional amendment allowing
presidents to serve more than one term.
East Timor
The Portuguese began to trade with the island of Timor in
the early 16th century and colonized it in mid-century. Skirmishing
with the Dutch in the region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty
in which Portugal ceded the western portion of the island. Imperial
Japan occupied East Timor from 1942 to 1945, but Portugal resumed
colonial authority after the Japanese defeat in World War II. East
Timor declared itself independent from Portugal on 28 November 1975
and was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces nine days later.
It was incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as the province of
East Timor. An unsuccessful campaign of pacification followed over
the next two decades, during which an estimated 100,000 to 250,000
individuals lost their lives. On 30 August 1999, in a UN-supervised
popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of East
Timor voted for independence from Indonesia. Between the referendum
and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in late
September 1999, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and
supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale,
scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed
approximately 1,400 Timorese and forcibly pushed 300,000 people into
West Timor as refugees. The majority of the country's
infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply
systems, and schools, and nearly 100% of the country's electrical
grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999 the Australian-led
peacekeeping troops of the International Force for East Timor
(INTERFET) deployed to the country and brought the violence to an
end. On 20 May 2002, East Timor was internationally recognized as an
independent state. In March of 2006, a military strike led to
violence and a near breakdown of law and order. Over 2,000
Australian, New Zealand, and Portuguese police and peacekeepers
deployed to East Timor in late May. Although many of the
peacekeepers were replaced by UN police officers, 850 Australian
soldiers remained as of 1 January 2007.
Ecuador
What is now Ecuador formed part of the northern Inca Empire
until the Spanish conquest in 1533. Quito became a seat of Spanish
colonial government in 1563 and part of the Viceroyalty of New
Granada in 1717. The territories of the Viceroyalty - New Granada
(Colombia), Venezuela, and Quito - gained their independence by 1819
and formed a federation known as Gran Colombia. When Quito withdrew
in 1830, the traditional name was changed in favor of the "Republic
of the Equator." Between 1904 and 1942, Ecuador lost territories in
a series of conflicts with its neighbors. A border war with Peru
that flared in 1995 was resolved in 1999. Although Ecuador marked 25
years of civilian governance in 2004, the period has been marred by
political instability. Protests in Quito have contributed to the
mid-term ouster of Ecuador's last three democratically elected
Presidents.
Egypt
The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood,
coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and
west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great
civilizations. A unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C., and a series
of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last
native dynasty fell to the Persians in 341 B.C., who in turn were
replaced by the Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines. It was the Arabs who
introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the 7th century and who
ruled for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the
Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern after the
conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Following the
completion of the Suez Canal in 1869, Egypt became an important
world transportation hub, but also fell heavily into debt.
Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of
Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman
Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in
1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty following World War II. The
completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake
Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the
agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the
largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on
the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The
government has struggled to ready the economy for the new millennium
through economic reform and massive investment in communications and
physical infrastructure.