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1991: Soviet Union Breaks Up
The Soviet Union ended on December 26, splitting into 15 new countries and stopping the Cold War. The U.S. became the world’s biggest power after this. -
1992: European Union Starts
On February 7, the Maastricht Treaty made the European Union, bringing Europe closer with one money system, the euro. It helped countries work together more. -
1993: World Trade Center Attack
A bomb exploded in the World Trade Center’s garage on February 26, killing 6 people and hurting over 1,000. It was one of the first big terrorist attacks in the U.S. -
1994: Rwanda Killings
From April to July, about 800,000 people were killed in Rwanda because of fighting between groups. The world didn’t stop it, which made people upset. -
1995: Oklahoma City Bombing
On April 19, a man named Timothy McVeigh blew up a building in Oklahoma, killing 168 people. It was the worst homegrown attack in the U.S. at that time. -
1997: Climate Deal Signed
The Kyoto Protocol was made on December 11 to cut pollution and fight climate change. It was a big step, but not everyone liked it. -
1998: Google Begins
Google started on September 4 by two guys, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, making it easier to find stuff online. It grew into a huge tech company fast. -
1999: War in Yugoslavia
NATO bombed Yugoslavia from March to June to stop fighting in Kosovo. It worked, but some people didn’t like other countries getting involved. -
2000: Y2K Scare Ends
People worried computers would crash on January 1, 2000, but nothing big happened after fixes were made. It showed how much we depend on tech. -
2001: 9/11 Attacks
On September 11, terrorists flew planes into the World Trade Center and Pentagon, killing almost 3,000 people. It started a big U.S. fight against terrorism. -
2003: Iraq War Starts
The U.S. attacked Iraq on March 20, saying it had dangerous weapons, but none were found. The war caused lots of problems in the Middle East. -
2004: Big Tsunami Hits
A huge wave from an earthquake on December 26 killed over 230,000 people in many countries. It made people want better ways to warn about disasters. -
2007: First iPhone Comes Out
Apple showed off the iPhone on June 29, a phone that could do lots of things like play music and go online. It changed how we use phones forever. -
2008: Money Crisis Happens
A bank called Lehman Brothers failed on September 15, starting a big money problem around the world. Governments had to step in to help fix it. -
2010: Arab Spring Protests
In December, people in Tunisia started protesting, and soon others in Arab countries did too, kicking out some leaders. It was about wanting freedom, but some places got messy. -
2011: Bin Laden Dies
U.S. soldiers killed Osama bin Laden, the 9/11 leader, on May 2 in Pakistan. It was a big win, but terrorism didn’t stop. -
2015: New Climate Deal
On December 12, the Paris Agreement was signed by lots of countries to keep the Earth from getting too hot. It’s a big plan, but not everyone follows it well. -
2016: UK Leaves EU
On June 23, the UK voted to leave the European Union, called Brexit, which surprised many people. It took years to figure out and caused lots of arguments. -
2020: COVID-19 Spreads
On March 11, the world called COVID-19 a pandemic as it spread everywhere, killing millions. People stayed home, and vaccines came fast to help. -
2021: Capitol Attack
On January 6, a crowd broke into the U.S. Capitol to stop the election results, and 5 people died. It showed how divided the U.S. was.