-
-
Ukrainian independence proclaimed from Soviet Union; Ukrainians voted overwhelmingly for independence from the Soviet Union in a referendum; leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine signed an agreement, Commonwealth of Independent States, to end Soviet Union rule
-
On December 24, 1991 the Soviet Union was dissolved. Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the Soviet Union, announced his resignation. The Soviet Union divided up into 15 separate independent countries including:
-
NATO refused to offer membership to Ukraine and Georgia due to objections from Russia; coalition government collapsed;
-
The war took place in August 2008 amidst worsening relations between Russia and Georgia, which were both formerly constituent republics of the Soviet Union. The fighting took place in the strategically important Transcaucasia region, which borders the Middle East. It was regarded as the first European war of the 21st century.
-
The military intervention and annexation by Russia took place in the aftermath of the Ukrainian Revolution. It was a part of the wider unrest across southern and eastern Ukraine.
