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1997 CE

This year falls in the Twentieth century (1901–2000). Two world wars, the Russian and Chinese revolutions, the Cold War and the end of most colonial empires fall in this century. It also brings mass air travel, nuclear weapons, antibiotics and computers.

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Within fifteen years

Country · PalauPalau1994–Palau is a Pacific archipelago of about three hundred islands. Spain, Germany, Japan, and America ruled it in turn. It became independent in 1994 and is a presidential republic.
Country · CzechiaCzechia1993–Czechia, also called the Czech Republic, is a landlocked country in central Europe. It was part of Czechoslovakia from 1918 until the peaceful split of 1993. Václav Havel, the dissident playwright, became its first president.
Country · EritreaEritrea1993–Eritrea is a country on the Red Sea coast of the Horn of Africa. It was an Italian colony, then federated with Ethiopia, which annexed it. After a thirty year war it became independent in 1993. It is one of the most repressive states in the world.
Event · Twenty-first century · United StatesSeptember 11 attacks2001On September 11, 2001, nineteen al-Qaeda hijackers seized four American airliners and used them as weapons against the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and, but for the passengers of Flight 93, the United States Capitol. 2,977 people were killed.
Country · SlovakiaSlovakia1993–Slovakia is a landlocked country in central Europe. It was the eastern half of Czechoslovakia from 1918 until the peaceful split of 1993. It is a parliamentary republic.
Country · Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina1992–Bosnia and Herzegovina is a Balkan country that declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1992. The declaration was followed by a three year war that ended with the Dayton Agreement of 1995. It is a federation of two entities sharing a three member presidency.
Country · Timor-LesteTimor-Leste2002–Timor-Leste, also called East Timor, occupies the eastern half of the island of Timor. Portugal ruled it for centuries; Indonesia invaded in 1975. After a bloody occupation it became independent in 2002, the first new state of the century.
Country · ArmeniaArmenia1991–Armenia is a landlocked country in the Caucasus, the first state to adopt Christianity, in 301. Its medieval kingdom fell centuries ago; the modern republic became independent in 1991. It is a parliamentary republic.
Country · AzerbaijanAzerbaijan1991–Azerbaijan is a country in the Caucasus, on the Caspian Sea, rich in oil. It was briefly independent in 1918, then a Soviet republic until 1991. It is a presidential republic.
Country · BelarusBelarus1991–Belarus is a landlocked country in eastern Europe, between Russia and Poland. It became independent when the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. Alexander Lukashenko has been its president since 1994.
Country · CroatiaCroatia1991–Croatia is a crescent shaped country on the Adriatic Sea. A medieval Croatian kingdom existed from the tenth century; the modern state declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. It fought a war of independence until 1995 and joined the European Union in 2013.
Country · EstoniaEstonia1991–Estonia is a Baltic country on the Gulf of Finland. It was independent from 1918 to 1940, then absorbed into the Soviet Union. It restored independence in 1991 and became known for its digital government.
Country · GeorgiaGeorgia1991–Georgia is a mountainous country in the Caucasus with one of the oldest Christian traditions. Its medieval kingdom was a regional power before falling to Mongols and Persians. It became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Country · KazakhstanKazakhstan1991–Kazakhstan is the largest landlocked country in the world, stretching across the central Asian steppe. It was the last Soviet republic to declare independence, in 1991. It is a presidential republic rich in oil and minerals.
Country · KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan1991–Kyrgyzstan is a mountainous, landlocked country in central Asia. Its people are traditionally nomadic herders. It became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991 and is a parliamentary republic.
Country · LatviaLatvia1991–Latvia is a Baltic country on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. It was independent from 1918 to 1940, then absorbed into the Soviet Union. It restored independence in 1991.
Country · LithuaniaLithuania1991–Lithuania is the largest of the Baltic states. Its medieval grand duchy was once the largest state in Europe. It was independent from 1918 to 1940, then under Soviet rule until independence was restored in 1991.
Country · MoldovaMoldova1991–Moldova is a landlocked country between Romania and Ukraine. Most of its territory was the Romanian province of Bessarabia before the Soviet Union took it in 1940. It became independent in 1991.
Country · North MacedoniaNorth Macedonia1991–North Macedonia is a landlocked Balkan country. It declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, the only republic to leave without war. A naming dispute with Greece was settled in 2019, when the country added North to its name.
Country · RussiaRussia1991–Russia is the largest country in the world, spanning eastern Europe and northern Asia. The Russian Federation was founded in 1991 from the wreckage of the Soviet Union. It is a federal semi presidential republic.
Country · SloveniaSlovenia1991–Slovenia is a small country between Italy, Austria, and Croatia. It was the first Yugoslav republic to declare independence, in 1991, after a ten day war. It is a parliamentary republic and the wealthiest of the former Yugoslav states.
Country · TajikistanTajikistan1991–Tajikistan is a mountainous, landlocked country in central Asia, the poorest of the former Soviet republics. Its people speak Persian. It became independent in 1991 and suffered a civil war through the 1990s.
Country · TurkmenistanTurkmenistan1991–Turkmenistan is a desert country in central Asia, mostly covered by the Karakum. It became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991. It is one of the most closed states in the world, ruled autocratically and rich in natural gas.
Country · UkraineUkraine1991–Ukraine is the largest country entirely in Europe. Its medieval state, Kievan Rus, was the cradle of Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian culture. The modern state became independent in 1991 and has fought to defend that independence since 2014.