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State Union of Serbia and Montenegro Државна Заједница Србија и Црна Гора Državna zajednica Srbija i Crna Gora
Federal republic (1992-2003), Client regime of de jure subordinate Serbia (1992-1997)[1] State Union (2003-2006)
← 1992–2006 →   →
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem Hej, Sloveni (English: "Hey, Slavs")
Capital	Belgrade
Language(s)	Serbo-Croatian (1992-1997) Serbian (1997-2006)
Government	Federal republic (1992-2003) State Union (2003-2006) Federal pseudo democracy (1992-2000), Federal representative democracy (2000-2006)
President
- 1992–1993	Dobrica Ćosić
- 1993–1997	Zoran Lilić
- 1997–2000	Slobodan Milošević
- 2000–2003	Vojislav Koštunica
- 2003–2006	Svetozar Marović
Prime Minister
- 1992–1993	Milan Panić
- 1993–1998	Radoje Kontić
- 1998–2000	Momir Bulatović
- 2000–2001	Zoran Žižić
- 2001–2003	Dragiša Pešić
- 2003-2006	Svetozar Marović
Historical era	Post–Cold War
- Constitution	April 27, 1992
- Established	April 28, 1992
- UN membership	November 1, 2000
- Reconstitution as the State Union	February 4, 2003
- Dissolution of the State Union	June 5, 2006
Area
- 2006	102,350 km2 (39,518 sq mi)
Population
- 2006 est.	10,832,545
Density	105.8 /km2  (274.1 /sq mi)
Currency	Yugoslav dinar (1992-2003) Serbian dinar (Serbia 2003-2006) Deutsche Mark (Montenegro 1999-2002) Euro (Montenegro 2002-2006)
Internet TLD	.yu
Calling code	+381
¹Membership as FRY ISO 3166-1=CS,UTC offset = +1

Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY): Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY; Serbian: Савезна Република Југославија, СРЈ; Savezna Republika Jugoslavija, SRJ). In 2003, it was reconstituted as a political union called the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro (Serbian: Државна Заједница Србија и Црна Гора, СЦГ; Državna Zajednica Srbija i Crna Gora, SCG).

The FRY aspired to be a sole legal successor to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but those claims were opposed by other former republics. The United Nations also denied its request to automatically continue the membership of the former state.^[2] Eventually, after the overthrow of Slobodan Milošević from power as president of the federation in 2000, the country rescinded those aspirations and accepted the opinion of Badinter Arbitration Committee about shared succession, and reapplied for and gained UN membership on November 2, 2000.^[3] From 1992 to 2000, some countries, including the United States, referred to the FRY as "Serbia and Montenegro".^[4]

The FRY was initially dominated from 1992 to 1997 by the government of its constituent republic of Serbia under Milošević when he was Serbian President.^[5] Milošević installed and forced the removal of several Federal Presidents and Prime Ministers.^[6] Federal Prime Minister Milan Panić became frustrated with Milošević's domineering behaviour during diplomatic talks in 1992, and told Milosevic to "shut up" because Milošević's position was officially subordinate to his position.^[7] Milosevic later forced Panić to resign.^[8] However this situation changed after 1997 when Milošević's last legal term as Serbian President ended and he became Federal President that year, in which Milošević entrenched the power of the Federal Presidency that he held.^[9]

A loose confederation, Serbia and Montenegro were united only in certain realms, such as defense. The two constituent republics functioned separately throughout the period of the Federal Republic, and continued to operate under separate economic policies, as well as using separate currencies (the euro was the only legal tender in Montenegro). On 21 May 2006, the Montenegrin independence referendum was held, and 55.5% of voters voted in favor of independence. The state union effectively came to an end after Montenegro's formal declaration of independence on 3 June 2006, and Serbia's formal declaration of independence on 5 June. After the dissolution, Serbia continued to be the legal successor of the union, while Montenegro re-applied for membership in international organizations.

History[link]

With the collapse of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991 and 1992, only Serbia and Montenegro agreed to maintain the Yugoslav state, and established a new constitution for a new Yugoslavia in 1992. With the collapse of communism across Eastern Europe, the new state followed the wave of democratic change. It abandoned former communist symbolism: the red star was removed from the national flag, and the communist coat of arms was replaced by a white double-headed eagle with the arms of both Serbia and Montenegro within it. The new state also abandoned the collective presidency of the former SFRY and replaced it with the system consisting of a single president, who was initially appointed with the consent of the republics of Serbia and Montenegro until 1997 after which the president was democratically elected.

Foundation[link]

With the collapse of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and its institutions from 1991 to 1992, the issue of unity of the two republics remaining in the collapsing federation, Serbia, Montenegro, as well as Serb breakaway territories in Croatia and Bosnia that wished to remain united, became an issue. In 1991 diplomatic talks chaired by Lord Carrington with the leaders of the six republics of the collapsing federation, resulted in all the republics except for Serbia agreeing that Yugoslavia had collapsed and that each republic should become an independent state. The Serbian government was surprised and outraged by Montenegro's decision in favour of terminating Yugoslavia, as the Bulatovic government had previously been closely allied with Milosevic's government in Serbia. It was discovered that Montenegro had been offered quick access into the European Community by Italy if Montenegro agreed to the termination of Yugoslavia. The Serbian government pressured Montenegro to back down and rescind the position, and thus Serbia and Montenegro agreed that Yugoslavia should continue. Yugoslavia's collapse began in 1991 when Slovenia, Croatia, and the Republic of Macedonia declared independence.

On December 26, 1991, Serbia, Montenegro, and the Serb rebel-held territory in Croatia of Krajina agreed that they would form a new "third Yugoslavia".^[10] Efforts were also made in 1991 to include Bosnia and Herzegovina within the federation, with negotiations between Milosevic, Bosnia's Serbian Democratic Party, and the Bosniak proponent of union - Bosnia's Vice-President Adil Zulfikarpašić taking place on this matter.^[11] Zulfikarpašić believed that Bosnia could benefit from attempting to forge a union with Serbia, Montenegro, and Krajina; and promoted a compromise between the Serbs and Bosniaks, in which Serb Krajina and Bosniak Sanjak from Serbia would be annexed into a Greater Bosnia that within a union with Serbia and Montenegro, would secure both the unity of Serbs and Bosniaks.^[12] Zulfikarpašić's proposition opposed any cantonization of Bosnia.^[13] The Bosnian Serbs did not include Zulfikarpašić's proposition alongside their propositions.^[14] However Milosevic continued negotiations with Zulfikarpašić to include Bosnia within a new Yugoslavia.^[15]

Efforts to include the whole of Bosnia within a new Yugoslavia effectively terminated by late 1991 as Izetbegovic planned to hold a referendum on independence while the Bosnian Serbs and Bosnian Croats formed autonomous territories.^[16]

Yugoslav Wars[link]

Territories controlled by Serb forces during the Yugoslav Wars. It is widely believed that Milosevic tried to create Greater Serbia, which would unite all Serbs across a collapsing Yugoslavia.^[17][18][19]

The FRY was suspended from a number of international institutions. This was due to the ongoing Yugoslav wars during the 1990s, which had prevented agreement being reached on the disposition of federal assets and liabilities, particularly the national debt. The Government of Yugoslavia supported Croatian and Bosnian Serbs in the wars from 1992 to 1995. Because of that, the country was under economic and political sanctions, which resulted in economic disaster that forced thousands of its young citizens to emigrate from the country.

In a BBC documentary, called the Death of Yugoslavia, and later in his testimony before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia during the trial of Slobodan Milošević, Yugoslav official Borisav Jović revealed that the Bosnian Serb army arose from the Yugoslav army forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He claimed that he had realized that Bosnia and Herzegovina was about to be recognized by the international community, and since Yugoslav People's Army troops were still located there at that point, their presence on Bosnian territory could have led to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia being accused of aggression. To avoid this, he and Milošević decided to move all JNA soldiers originating from Serbia and Montenegro back into Serbia and Montenegro, and to move all JNA soldiers of Bosnian Serb descent to Bosnia and Herzegovina.^[20] In this way, every Bosnian Serb was transferred from the Yugoslav army to what became the newly created Bosnian Serb Army. Through this, the Bosnian Serb army also received extensive military equipment and full funding from the FRY, as the Bosnian Serb faction alone could not pay for the costs.^[20] Furthermore, Serbian Radical Party founder and paramilitary Vojislav Seselj has publicly claimed that Serbian President Milošević personally asked him to send paramilitaries from Serbia into Bosnia and Herzegovina.^[20] Also the Bosnian Serb Army was led by an ex-Yugoslav military commander, Ratko Mladić, an extremely controversial figure, who served the Yugoslav during the Croatian War of 1991 to 1992, who has been accused of committing war crimes in Bosnia.

In 1995, Serbian President Slobodan Milošević represented the FRY and Bosnian Serbs at peace talks in Dayton, Ohio, USA, which negotiated the end of war in Bosnia with the Dayton Agreement.

Growing Separatism[link]

Montenegro[link]

From 1996, first public signs of political discord between parts of Montenegrin leadership and the Serbian leadership began to appear. By 1998, simultaneous with Montenegrin Prime Minister Milo Đukanović coming out on top in the power struggle with Montenegrin President Momir Bulatović, the republic undertook a different economic policy by adopting the Deutsche Mark as its currency. During autumn 1999, following the Kosovo War and the NATO bombing campaign, Đukanović (who by now firmly held power in Montenegro as Bulatović was completely squeezed out) drafted a document called Platforma za redefiniciju odnosa Crne Gore i Srbije (A platform for redefinition of relations within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) calling for major changes in the division of governing responsibilities within FR Yugoslavia though still officially seeing Montenegro within a joint state with Serbia. Milošević didn't respond to the platform considering it unconstitutional as political relations within the federal state got strained to a maximum especially against the backdrop of the assassination wave of figures from top political, criminal, and state business circles in both republics (Željko "Arkan" Ražnatović, Pavle Bulatović, Žika Petrović, and Goran Žugić as well two attempts on the life of opposition politician Vuk Drašković). By October 2000 Milošević lost power in Serbia. Contrary to expectation, Đukanović's response to the power change in Belgrade was not to further push the agenda outlined in his Platform, but instead to suddenly start pushing for full independence, thus completely dropping the Platform in the process. Subsequent governments of Montenegro carried out pro-independence policies, and political tensions with Serbia simmered despite political changes in Belgrade.

Kosovo War[link]

The Zašto? ("Why?") Monument , dedicated to the employees of the RTS who were killed during NATO bombing of the RTS building in 1999.

With Milošević's second and last legal term as Serbian President expiring in 1997, he ran for, and was elected President of Yugoslavia in 1997. Upon taking office, Milošević gained direct control of the Yugoslav military and security forces, and directed them to engage Kosovo separatists. The conflict escalated from 1998 to 1999 and became a civil war, known as the Kosovo War.

From March 1999, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) under the leadership of the United States waged war on Yugoslavia. NATO suspected that the Yugoslav government was committing genocide on ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. This suspicion was based on the presence of Serbian ultra-nationalist and former paramilitary Vojislav Šešelj being Prime Minister of Yugoslavia; a fear of a repeat of atrocities similar to those committed by Serb forces in Bosnia; and suspicion of Milošević's influence in the previous war atrocities. NATO began an air campaign called Operation Allied Force against Yugoslav military forces and positions and suspected Serbian paramilitaries. The NATO campaign came under severe criticism for its attacks and many inaccurate bombings across Yugoslavia which killed many civilians. The Yugoslav government claimed the NATO attacks were a terror campaign against the country while NATO defended its actions as being legal. The air attacks against Belgrade by NATO were the first attacks on the city since World War II. Some of the worst massacres against civilian Albanians by Serbian forces occurred after NATO started its bombing of Yugoslavia. Cuska massacre,^[21] Podujevo massacre,^[22][23] were some of the massacres committed by the Serbian police and paramilitaries during the war. NATO promised to end its bombings of Yugoslavia, when Milošević agreed to end the Yugoslav campaign in Kosovo, withdraw Yugoslav & Serb security forces from the province. After an array of bombings, Milošević submitted and agreed to end Yugoslavia's anti-separatist campaign in Kosovo and allowed NATO forces to occupy Kosovo.

In June 1999, after the NATO bombings ended, NATO and other troops, entered the province and organized with the controversial Albanian separatist Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) paramilitaries, to maintain order. NATO's decision to cooperate with the Kosovo Liberation Army was seen by Serbs as a pro-separatist stand on Kosovo. The KLA committed a number of atrocities during the Kosovo War. Before the handover of power, some 300,000 Kosovars, mostly Serbs, left the province, many had been expelled by the Albanians. The number of Serbs in Kosovo dropped drastically as Serbs fled Kosovo, fearing persecution by the KLA which had integrated into the Kosovo security force called KFOR. Despite the controversy, the United Nations proceeded to created a mandate in Kosovo, in which the province technically remained a part of Serbia (or the FRY as it was then), but was completely autonomous. The status of Kosovo was now greater than it had been between 1974 and 1990 when it was at its strongest; the province followed Montenegro in rejecting the Yugoslav/Serbian Dinar in place of the international currencies, and went even further: Kosovo's parliament created new car registration plates for its citizens, unlike Montenegro which continues to use the old FYR type licence plates two years after independence. Kosovo was sanctioned to deploy its own law enforcement, its own government, whilst all Yugoslav security forces (i.e. the military, police, militias and paramilitaries) were repelled from entering the region, breeching conditions which did allow a presence of Belgrade forces within Kosovo to protect objects of interest to the Serbs and the various other nationalities (such as the Orthodox monasteries, and the Catholic churches used by Kosovo's ethnic Croats). The U.N. mandate would remain in place for the full duration of the FYR and beyond; it continues to guarantee Kosovo's independence today.

State Union[link]

In 2002, Serbia and Montenegro came to a new agreement regarding continued co-operation, which, among other changes, promised the end of the name Yugoslavia, since they were part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. On 4 February 2003, the federal parliament of Yugoslavia created a loose confederation - State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. A new Constitutional Charter was agreed to provide a framework for the governance of the country.

On Sunday, 21 May 2006, Montenegrins voted on an independence referendum, with 55.5% supporting independence. Fifty-five percent or more of affirmative votes were needed to dissolve the state union of Serbia and Montenegro. The turnout was 86.3% and 99.73% of the more than 477,000 votes cast were deemed valid.

The subsequent Montenegrin proclamation of independence on June 2006 and the Serbian proclamation of independence on 5 June ended the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and thus the last remaining vestiges of the former Yugoslavia.

Administrative divisions[link]

Map of the territorial subdivisions of Serbia and Montenegro.

Serbia and Montenegro was composed of four principal political units, consisting of two republics and two subordinate autonomous provinces:

• Republic of Serbia (capital: Belgrade)

• Vojvodina – autonomous province within Serbia (capital: Novi Sad)
• Kosovo and Metohija – autonomous province within Serbia. Under United Nations administration after Kosovo War (capital: Pristina)

• Republic of Montenegro (capital: Podgorica)

Serbia[link]

The territorial organisation of the Republic of Serbia was regulated by the Law on Territorial Organisation and Local Self-Government, adopted in the Assembly of Serbia on 24 July 1991. Under the Law, the municipalities, cities and settlements make the bases of the territorial organization.^[24]

Serbia was divided into 195 municipalities and 4 cities, which were the basic units of local autonomy. It had two autonomous provinces: Kosovo and Metohija in the south (with 30 municipalities), which was under the administration of UNMIK after 1999, and Vojvodina in the north (with 46 municipalities and 1 city). The part of Serbia that was neither in Kosovo nor in Vojvodina was called Central Serbia. Central Serbia was not an administrative division (unlike the two autonomous provinces), and it had no regional government of its own.

In addition, there were four cities: Belgrade, Niš, Novi Sad and Kragujevac, each having an assembly and budget of its own. The cities comprised several municipalities, divided into "urban" (in the city proper) and "other" (suburban). Competences of cities and their municipalities were divided.

Municipalities were gathered into districts, which are regional centres of state authority, but have no assemblies of their own; they present purely administrative divisions, and host various state institutions such as funds, office branches and courts. The Republic of Serbia was than and is still today divided into 29 districts (17 in Central Serbia, 7 in Vojvodina and 5 in Kosovo, which are now defunct), while the city of Belgrade presents a district of its own.

Montenegro[link]

Montenegro had 21 municipalities, and two urban municipalities, subdivisions of Podgorica municipality.

Politics[link]

The Federal Assembly of FRY (1992–2003) was composed out of two chambers: the council of citizens and the council of republics. Whereas the council of citizens served as an ordinary assembly, representing the people of FRY, the council of republics was made equally by representatives from the federation's constituent republics, to ensure federal equality.

Under the FRY, the old collective presidency of the SFRY was dissolved and a single president was elected. The status of leadership of the Federal Yugoslav president was unstable with no president lasting more than four years in office. The first president from 1992 to 1993 was Dobrica Ćosić, a former communist Yugoslav partisan during World War II and later one of the fringe contributors of the controversial Memorandum of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. Despite being head of the country, Ćosić was forced out of office in 1993 due to his opposition to Serbian President Slobodan Milošević. Ćosić was replaced by Zoran Lilić who served from 1993 to 1997, and then followed by Milošević becoming Yugoslav President in 1997 after his last legal term as Serbian president ended in 1997. The presidential election in 2000 was accused of being the result of vote fraud. Yugoslav citizens took to the streets and engaged in riots in Belgrade demanding that Milošević be removed from power. Shortly afterwards Milošević resigned and Vojislav Koštunica took over as Yugoslav president and remained president until the state's reconstitution as the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro.

After the federation was reconstituted as a state union, the new Assembly of the State Union was created. It was unicameral and was made up of 126 deputies, of which 91 were from Serbia and 35 were from Montenegro. The Assembly convened in the building of the old Federal Assembly of FRY, which now houses the Assembly of Serbia

In 2003, after the constitutional changes, new President of Serbia and Montenegro was elected. It was Svetozar Marović of Montenegro who remained in office until the breakup of the state union in 2006.

Geography[link]

Serbia and Montenegro had an area of 102,350 square kilometres (39,518 sq mi), with 199 kilometres (124 mi) of coastline. The terrain of the two republics is extremely varied, with much of Serbia comprising plains and low hills (except in the more mountainous region of Kosovo and Metohija) and much of Montenegro consisting of high mountains. Serbia is entirely landlocked, with the coastline belonging to Montenegro. The climate is similarly varied. The north has a continental climate (cold winters and hot summers); the central region has a combination of a continental and Mediterranean climate; the southern region had an Adriatic climate along the coast, with inland regions experiencing hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall inland.

Belgrade, with its population of 1,574,050, is the largest city in the two nations: and the only one of significant size. The country's other principal cities were Novi Sad, Niš, Kragujevac, Podgorica, Subotica, Pristina, and Prizren, each with populations of about 100,000-250,000 people.

Demographics[link]

Serbia and Montenegro had more demographic variety than most other European countries. The three largest named nationalities were Serbs (62.3%), Albanians (mostly Ghegs) (16.6%) and Montenegrins (5%) according to the 1991 census. The country also had significant populations of Hungarians, Roma, Bulgarians, Ethnic Macedonians, Romanians and other eastern Romance peoples (including Aromanians, Megleno-Romanians and Vlachs), plus dozens of other Slavic peoples, namely Bosniaks, Croats, Bunjevci, Šokci, Goranci, Janjevci, Rusins, Slovaks, Muslims by nationality and Yugoslavs. Turkic subgroups still live in Kosovo (mostly Gagauz and Seljuks). There were a number of citizens who declared their nationality as Egyptian and Ashkali. These two were previously regarded as a part of Roma who are of the belief that they originated from present-day Egypt and Israel. Most of the ethnic diversity was situated in the provinces of Kosovo and Vojvodina, where smaller numbers of other minority groups may have be found. The large Albanian population was chiefly concentrated in Kosovo, with smaller populations in the Preševo and Bujanovac municipalities in Central Serbia, and in the south-east of Montenegro (Ulcinj municipality). The large Bosniak and Montenegrin Muslim population lived in the Sandžak region on the border between Serbia and Montenegro (mainly Novi Pazar in Serbia, and Rožaje in Montenegro).

Total Serbia-Montenegro - 10,019,657

• Serbia (total): 9,396,411
  • Vojvodina: 2,116,725
  • Central Serbia: 5,479,686
  • Kosovo: 1,800,000
• Montenegro: 623,246

• Major cities (over 100,000 inhabitants) - 2002 data (2003 for Podgorica):
  • Beograd (Belgrade): 1,280,639 (1,574,050 metro)
  • Novi Sad: 215,600 (298,139 metro)
  • Pristina: 200,000 (2002 estimate)
  • Niš: 173,390 (234,863 metro)
  • Kragujevac: 145,890 (175,182 metro)
  • Podgorica: 139,500 (169,000 metro)
  • Prizren: 121,000 (2002 estimate)
  • Subotica: 99,471 (147,758 metro)

According to a 2004 estimate the State Union had 10,825,900 inhabitants.

According to a July 2006 estimate, the State Union had 10,832,545 inhabitants.

Economy[link]

FR Yugoslavia[link]

The FR Yugoslavia suffered significantly economically due to the loss of previous territories of the SFRY to the seceding states and due to mismanagement of the economy, and an extended period of economic sanctions. In the early 1990s, the FRY suffered from hyperinflation of the Yugoslav dinar. By the mid 1990s, the FRY had overcome the inflation. Further damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry caused by the Kosovo War left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. Since the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević in October 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government has implemented stabilization measures and embarked on an aggressive market reform program. After renewing its membership in the International Monetary Fund in December 2000, Yugoslavia continued to reintegrate with other world nations by rejoining the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

The smaller republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the Milošević era. Afterwards, the two republics had separate central banks whilst Montenegro began to use different currencies - it first adopted the Deutsch mark, and continued to use it until the mark fell into disuse to be replaced by the euro. Serbia continued to use the Yugoslav Dinar, renaming it the Serbian dinar.

The complexity of the FRY's political relationships, slow progress in privatisation, and stagnation in the European economy were detrimental to the economy. Arrangements with the IMF, especially requirements for fiscal discipline, were an important element in policy formation. Severe unemployment was a key political and economic problem. Corruption also presented a major problem, with a large black market and a high degree of criminal involvement in the formal economy.

State Union[link]

An extended period of economic sanctions, and the damage to FR Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry caused by the Kosovo War left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. Since the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević in October 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government has implemented stabilization measures and embarked on an aggressive market reform program. After renewing its membership in the International Monetary Fund in December 2000, Yugoslavia continued to reintegrate into the international community by rejoining the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. A World Bank-European Commission sponsored Donors' Conference held in June 2001 raised $1.3 billion for economic restructuring. An agreement rescheduling the country's $4.5 billion Paris Club government debts was concluded in November 2001; it will write off 66% of the debt; a similar debt relief agreement on its $2.8 billion London Club commercial debt has been reached in July 2004; 62% of the debt had been written off.

The smaller republic of Montenegro severed its economy from federal control and from Serbia during the Milošević era. During the Serbia and Montenegro period, both republics had separate central banks, different currencies - Montenegro first used the Deutsche Mark, then the euro when it replaced the Deutsch Mark, while Serbia used the Serbian dinar as official currency. The two states also had different customs tariffs, separate state budgets, police forces, and governments.

The southern Serbian province of Kosovo, while formally still part of Serbia (according to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244), moved toward local autonomy under the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) and was dependent on the international community for financial and technical assistance. The euro and the Yugoslav dinar were official currencies, and UNMIK collected taxes and managed the budget.

The complexity of Serbia and Montenegro's political relationships, slow progress in privatisation, and stagnation in the European economy were detrimental to the economy. Arrangements with the IMF, especially requirements for fiscal discipline, were an important element in policy formation. Severe unemployment was a key political economic problem. Corruption also presented a major problem, with a large black market and a high degree of criminal involvement in the formal economy.

Transport[link]

Serbia, and in particular the valley of the Morava is often described as "the crossroads between the East and the West" - one of the primary reasons for its turbulent history. The valley is by far the easiest way of land travel from continental Europe to Greece and Asia Minor.

Until the outbreak of the Yugoslav wars, the ironically named highway "Bratstvo i jedinstvo" (Brotherhood and Unity) running through Croatia, Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia was one of Europe's most important transport arteries. It gradually resumed this role as the security situation stabilized.

Major international highways going through Serbia are E75 and E70. E763/E761 is the most important route connecting Serbia with Montenegro.

The Danube, an important international waterway, flows through Serbia.

The Port of Bar was the largest seaport located in Montenegro.

Holidays[link]

Holidays celebrated only in Serbia

• 15 February - Sretenje (National Day, non-working)

Holidays celebrated only in Montenegro

• 13 July - Statehood Day (non-working)

Proposed flag and anthem[link]

2003 proposed flag for Serbia and Montenegro.

After the formation of Serbia and Montenegro, the Yugoslav tricolour was to be replaced by a new compromise flag. Article 23 of the Law for the implementation of the Constitutional Charter ^[25] stated that a law specifying the new flag was to be passed within 60 days of the first session of the new joint parliament. Among the flag proposals, the popular choice was a flag with a shade of blue in between the Serbian tricolour and the Montenegrin tricolour of 1993-2004. The colour shade Pantone 300 C was perceived as the best choice.^[26] However the parliament failed to vote on the proposal within the legal time-frame and the flag was not adopted. In 2004, Montenegro adopted a radically different flag, as its independence-leaning government sought to distance itself from Serbia. Proposals for a compromise flag were dropped after this and the Union of Serbia & Montenegro never adopted a flag.

A similar fate befell the country's anthem and coat-of-arms to be; the above-mentioned Article 23 also stipulated that a law determining the State Union's flag and anthem was to be passed by the end of 2003. The official proposal for an anthem was a combination piece consisting of one verse of the Serbian anthem "Bože pravde" followed by a verse of the Montenegrin anthem, "Oj, svijetla majska zoro". This proposal was dropped after some public opposition, notably by Serbian Patriarch Pavle.^[27] Another legal deadline passed and no anthem was adopted. Serious proposals for the coat of arms were never put forward, probably because the coat of arms of the FRY, adopted in 1994 combining Serbian and Montenegrin heraldic elements, was considered adequate.

Thus, the State Union never officially adopted state symbols and continued to use the flag, arms and anthem of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia by inertia until its dissolution in 2006.

Sports and international contests[link]

Football[link]

The country qualified for two FIFA World Cups - in 1998 as FR Yugoslavia and in 2006 as Serbia-Montenegro. It also qualified for Euro 2000.

The 1998 World Cup appearance in France was accompanied with plenty of expectation and quiet confidence as the team was considered to be one of the tournament's dark horses due to being stacked with proven world-class players such as 29-year-old Predrag Mijatović, 33-year-old Dragan Stojković, 29-year-old Siniša Mihajlović, 28-year-old Vladimir Jugović, and 31-year-old Dejan Savićević, as well as emerging 19-year-old youngster Dejan Stanković, and tall 24-year-old target forwards Savo Milošević and Darko Kovačević. Another reason for heightened expectations was the fact this was the country's first major international appearance following the UN-imposed exile. However, the talented squad never managed to hit top gear - although it did make it out of the group, it got eliminated by Holland via an injury-time goal in the round-of-16. Two years later at Euro 2000, virtually the same team again made it out of the group and was again eliminated out of the tournament by Holland, this time convincingly 1-6 in the quarterfinals.

The country was also represented as Yugoslavia at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games and at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. Thus, throughout the 1990s, athletic teams from the country competed under the Yugoslavia name but were composed entirely of Serbian and Montenegrin athletes.

Serbia and Montenegro were represented by a single football team in the 2006 FIFA World Cup tournament, despite having formally split just weeks prior to its start. The final squad was made up of players born in both Serbia and Montenegro.

They played their last ever international on 21 June 2006, a 3-2 loss to Côte d'Ivoire. Following the World Cup, this team has been inherited by Serbia, while a new one was to be organized to represent Montenegro in future international competitions.

Basketball[link]

The country dominated European and world basketball during the mid-to-late 1990s and early 2000s.

They were represented by a single team in the Basketball World Championship 2006 as well. This team was also inherited by Serbia after the tournament, while Montenegro created a separate national basketball team afterwards, as well as the national teams of all other team sports.

The two countries were represented in the Miss Earth 2006 pageant by a single delegate, Dubravka Skoric.

Serbia and Montenegro also participated in the Eurovision Song Contest and in Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2005 only on one occasion. The country debuted in the Eurovision Song Contest under the name Serbia and Montenegro in 2004, when Zeljko Joksimovic got 2nd place. The next to follow was the Montenegrin boyband No Name. In 2006, the year of Montenegrin independence, the country Serbia and Montenegro didn't have representative due to the scandal in Europesma 2006. In 2007, Serbia and Montenegro were independent and made their debuts in Eurovision as fully independent countries. Serbia won the contest with Marija Serifovic back in 2007.

See also[link]

• Politics of Serbia and Montenegro
• Military of Serbia and Montenegro
• Savez Izviđača Srbije i Crne Gore
• Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro
• List of national border changes since the twentieth century

References[link]

External links[link]

• (French) Audio clips: Traditional music of Serbia and Montenegro. Musée d'Ethnographie de Genève. Accessed November 25, 2010.
• Country Profile: Serbia and Montenegro, BBC

Coordinates: 44°49′N 20°28′E / 44.817°N 20.467°E / 44.817; 20.467

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Serbia and Montenegro

Republic of Serbia Република Србија Republika Srbija
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: Боже правде / Bože pravde God of Justice
Location of Serbia (green) – Kosovo (light green) on the European continent (dark grey)
Capital (and largest city)		Belgrade 44°48′N 20°28′E / 44.8°N 20.467°E / 44.8; 20.467
Official language(s)		Serbian1
Ethnic groups (2002)		82.9% Serbs, 3.9% Hungarians, 1.8% Bosniaks, 1.4% Roma, 10.0% others[1] (excluding Kosovo)
Demonym		Serbian
Government		Parliamentary republic
-	President	Tomislav Nikolić
-	Prime Minister	Mirko Cvetković
Legislature		National Assembly
Formation
-	First state	768
-	Kingdom	1217
-	Empire	1346
-	Suzerain monarchy	1817
-	De-jure independence	1878
-	Independent republic	2006
Area
-	Total	88,361 km2 (113th) 34,116 sq mi
-	Water (%)	0.13 (including Kosovo)
Population
-	2011 estimate	7,120,666 (excluding Kosovo)[2] (100th)
-	2002 census	7,498,001 (excluding Kosovo)[2]
-	Density	91,9/km2 (112th) 238/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2011 estimate
-	Total	$78.869 billion[3] (76th)
-	Per capita	$10,642 (excluding Kosovo)[3] (79th)
GDP (nominal)		2011 estimate
-	Total	$45.064 billion[3] (79th)
-	Per capita	$6,080 (excluding Kosovo)[3] (81st)
Gini (2008)		26 (low)
HDI (2011)		0.766[4] (high) (59th)
Currency		Serbian dinar (RSD)
Time zone		CET (UTC+1)
-	Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Drives on the		Right
ISO 3166 code		RS
Internet TLD		.rs, .срб
Calling code		381
1 See also regional minority languages recognized by the ECRML

Serbia ⁱ/ˈsɜrbiə/, officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: Република Србија / Republika Srbija, pronounced [rɛpǔblika sř̩bija]), is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans. Serbia borders Hungary to the north; Romania and Bulgaria to the east; the Republic of Macedonia to the south; and Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro to the west; additionally, it borders Albania through Kosovo, whose status as part of Serbia is disputed. Serbia covers an area of 88,361 km² and has a population of just over 7.1 million, while the capital and largest city is Belgrade.

The arrival of the Serbs to the Balkans in the 7th century, established several states, eventually forming the Serbian Empire in the 14th century. By the 16th century, Serbia was conquered and occupied by the Ottoman Empire, at times interrupted by the Habsburgs. In the early 19th century the Serbian revolution re-established the country as the region's first constitutional monarchy, which subsequently expanded its territory and pioneered the abolition of feudalism in the Balkans.^[5] The former Habsburg crownland of Vojvodina united with Serbia in 1918. Following World War I, Serbia formed Yugoslavia with other South Slavic peoples which existed in several forms up until 2006, when the National Assembly of Serbia declared independence and the legal succession to the former State Union. In February 2008 the parliament of UNMIK-governed Kosovo, Serbia's southern province, declared independence, with mixed responses from international governments.

Serbia is a member of the UN, Council of Europe, OSCE, PfP, BSEC and CEFTA. It is also an official candidate for membership in the European Union^[6] and a neutral country.^[7]

Etymology[link]

The name "Serbia" was first mentioned as Greek: Σέρβια, meaning "land of the Serbs". There are many theories regarding the origin of the name of the Serbs. The most likely is that it is derived from the Old Slavic root *serb-, meaning "same".^[8] Another proposed etymology is that of the Indo-European root *ser- "to watch over, protect", akin to Latin servare "to keep, guard, protect, preserve, observe".^[9]

History[link]

Early history[link]

Lady of Vinča, ~5000 BC

The Neolithic Starčevo and Vinča cultures existed in or near Belgrade and dominated the Balkans (as well as parts of Central Europe and Asia Minor) 8,500 years ago.^[10][11] Lepenski Vir and Vinča-Belo Brdo are two important sites of these cultures, located at the banks of the Danube. Around 1000 BC, the Paleo-Balkan peoples known as Thracians, Dacians, Illyrians developed in the Balkans. Ancient Greeks expanded into the south of modern Serbia in the 4th century BC, the north-westernmost point of Alexander the Great's empire being the town of Kale-Krševica.^[12] The Celtic tribe of Scordisci settled throughout Serbia in the 3rd century BC and built several fortifications, including Singidunum, present-day Belgrade, and Naissos, present-day Niš. Scordisci formed their own tribal state in this area and capital of that state was Singidunum (Belgrade). The Romans conquered parts of Serbia in the 2nd century BC; in 167 BC when conquering the west, establishing the province of Illyricum, and the rest of central part of present-day Serbia in 75 BC, establishing the province of Moesia Superior. Srem was conquered in 9 BC and Bačka and Banat in 106 AD after the Dacian wars. Despite its small size, contemporary Serbia extends fully or partially over several Roman provinces such as Moesia, Pannonia, Praevalitana, Dalmatia, Dacia and Macedonia. The chief towns of Serbian Upper Moesia (and wider) in the principate were: Singidunum, Viminacium, Remesiana, Naissus and especially, Sirmium which served as a Roman capital during the Tetrarchy.^[13] Seventeen Roman Emperors were born in Serbia, second only to Italy.^[14] The most famous of these was Constantine the Great, the first Christian Emperor, who issued religious tolerance throughout the Empire. When the Roman Empire was divided in 395, the region remained under the East, Byzantine Empire. After the 520s, Slavs appeared in the Byzantine Empire in great numbers.^[15]

Middle Ages[link]

The Serbs, as Slavs in the vicinity of the Byzantine Empire, lived in so-called Sklavinia ("Slav lands"), territories initially out of Byzantine control and independent.^[16] In the 8^th century, the Vlastimirović dynasty established the Serbian Principality. In 822, Serbia "stretched over the greater part of Dalmatia",^[17] and Christianity was adopted as state-religion in ca 870.^[18] In the mid 10^th century the state had emerged into a tribal confederation that stretched to the shores of the Adriatic Sea by the Neretva, the Sava, the Morava, and Skadar.^[19] The state disintegrated after the death of the last known Vlastimirid ruler – the Byzantines annexed the region and held it for a century, until 1040 when the Serbs under the Vojislavljević dynasty revolted in Duklja (Pomorje).^[20] In 1091, the Vukanović dynasty established the Serbian Grand Principality, based in Rascia (Zagorje).^[20] The two halves were reunited in 1142.^[21]

In 1166, Stefan Nemanja assumed the throne, marking the beginning of a prospering Serbia, henceforth under the rule of the Nemanjić dynasty.^[22] Nemanja's son Rastko (posth. Saint Sava), gained autocephaly for the Serbian Church in 1217 and authored the oldest known constitution, and in the same year Stefan II was crowned King, establishing the Serbian Kingdom.^[23] The Serbian Empire was established in 1346 by Stephen Dušan the Mighty, during which time Serbia reached its territorial peak, becoming one of the most powerful states in Europe and the most powerful in the Balkans. Dušan's Code, a universal system of law, was enacted. The reign of his son Stephen Uroš V the Weak saw the Empire fragment into a confederation of principalities. Emperor Uroš died childless in December 1371, after much of the nobility had been destroyed by the Ottomans in the Battle of Maritsa earlier that year. The Mrnjavčević, Lazarević and Branković dynasties ruled the Serbian lands in the 15th and 16th centuries. Constant struggles took place between various Serbian provinces and the Ottoman Empire. After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453 and the Siege of Belgrade, the Serbian Despotate fell in 1459 following the siege of the provisional capital of Smederevo. After repelling Ottoman attacks for over 70 years, Belgrade finally fell in 1521, opening the way for Ottoman expansion into Central Europe.

Ottoman and Austrian rule[link]

After the loss of independence to the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire, Serbia briefly regained sovereignty under Jovan Nenad in the 16th century. Three Austrian invasions and numerous rebellions, such as the Banat Uprising (1595), constantly challenged Ottoman rule. Vojvodina endured a century long Ottoman occupation before being ceded to the Habsburg Empire in the 17th–18th centuries under the Treaty of Karlowitz. As the Great Serb Migrations depopulated most of southern Serbia,^{[citation needed]} the Serbs sought refuge across the Danube river in Vojvodina to the north and the Military Frontier in the west where they were granted rights by the Austrian crown under measures such as the Statuta Wallachorum of 1630.

However, modern Ottomanist and post-constructivist scholars have refuted such a claim of a massive migration^[24][25] The Ottoman persecutions of Christians culminated in the abolition and plunder of the Patriarchate of Peć in 1766.^[26] However, most post-constructivist scholars have argued that the Ottoman Empire was in fact 'liberal' towards its Christians subjects relative to other parts of Europe at the time, but also that the Ottoman sultan enjoyed widespread legitimacy from the Orthodox clergy. The Ottoman Empire facilitated for a shared sense of time among Orthodox Christians, defined the ecclesiastical calendar: time revolve around succession feast days in Orthodox calendar; Saint’s days, the marking of changing seasons, harvests, fairs and family events. This was linked to the Idea of legitimate Ottoman rule rule and a ‘shared vision of the world’ among Orthodox Balkans in the 18th century which brought political unity and created commonalities.^[27]

According to the nationalist reading of history, as Ottoman rule in the Sanjak of Smederevo grew ever more brutal, the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I formally granted the Serbs the right to their autonomous crownland following several petitions.^[28]

Revolution and independence[link]

Karađorđe Petrović and Miloš Obrenović, leaders of the Serbian Revolution

The quest for national emancipation was first undertaken during the Serbian national revolution, in 1804 until 1815. The national liberation war was followed by a period of formalization, negotiations and finally, the Constitutionalization, effectively ending the process in 1835.^[29] For the first time in Ottoman history, the entire Serbian Christian population had risen up against the Sultan.^[30] The entrenchment of French troops in western Balkans, the incessant political crises in the Ottoman Empire, the growing intensity of the Austro–Russian rivalry in the Balkans, the intermittent warfare which consumed the energies of French and Russian Empires and the outbreak of protracted hostilities between the Porte and Russia are but a few of the major international developments which directly or indirectly influenced the course of the Serbian revolt.^[30]

During the First Serbian Uprising, led by Duke Karađorđe Petrović, Serbia was independent for almost a decade before the Ottoman army was able to reoccupy the country. Shortly after this, the Second Serbian Uprising began. Led by Miloš Obrenović, it ended in 1815 with a compromise between the Serbian revolutionaries and the Ottoman authorities. They were the easternmost bourgeois revolutions in the 19th-century world.^[31] Likewise, Serbia was one of the first nations in the Balkans to abolish feudalism.^[32] The Convention of Ackerman in 1826, the Treaty of Adrianople in 1829 and finally, the Hatt-i Sharif, recognized the suzerainty of Serbia with Miloš Obrenović I as its hereditary Prince.^[33][34] The struggle for liberty, a more modern society and a nation-state in Serbia won a victory under first constitution in the Balkans on 15 February 1835. It was replaced by a more conservative Constitution in 1838. In the two following decades, temporarily ruled by the House of Karađorđević, the Principality of Serbia actively supported the neighboring Habsburg Serbs, especially during the 1848 revolutions. Interior minister Ilija Garašanin published The Draft which became the standpoint of Serbian foreign policy from the mid-19th century onwards.

Following the clashes between the Ottoman army and civilians in Belgrade in 1862, and under pressure from the Great Powers, by 1867 the last Turkish soldiers left the Principality. By enacting a new constitution without consulting the Porte, Serbian diplomats confirmed the de facto independence of the country. In 1876, Serbia declared war on the Ottoman Empire, proclaiming its unification with Bosnia. The formal independence of the country was internationally recognized at the Congress of Berlin in 1878, which formally ended the Russo-Turkish War; this treaty, however, prohibited Serbia from uniting with Bosnia by placing it under Austro-Hungarian occupation.^[35] From 1815 to 1903, Principality of Serbia was ruled by the House of Obrenović, except from 1842 to 1858, when it was led by Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević. In 1882, Serbia became a kingdom, ruled by King Milan. In 1903, following May Overthrow, the House of Karađorđević, descendants of the revolutionary leader Karađorđe Petrović assumed power. Serbia was the only country in the region that was allowed by the Great Powers to be ruled by its own domestic dynasty. The 1848 revolution in Austria lead to the establishment of the autonomous territory of Serbian Vojvodina. By 1849, the region was transformed into the Voivodeship of Serbia and Banat of Temeschwar.

Balkan Wars and World War I[link]

The Balkan Wars took place between 1912 and 1913. The First Balkan War broke out when the member states of the Balkan League attacked and divided Ottoman territories in the Balkans in a seven-month campaign, resulting in the Treaty of London. For the Kingdom of Serbia, this victory enabled territorial expansion into Raška and Kosovo. The Second Balkan War soon ensued when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its gains, turned against its former allies, Serbia and Greece. Their armies repulsed the Bulgarian offensive and counter-attacked, penetrating into Bulgaria, while Romania and the Ottomans used the favourable time to intervene against Bulgaria to win territorial gains. In the resulting Treaty of Bucharest, Bulgaria lost most of the territories gained in the First Balkan War, with Serbia annexing Vardar Macedonia. Serbia enlarged its territory by 80% and its population by 50% within just two years;^[36] it also suffered high casualties on the eve of World War I, with around 20,000 dead.^[37]

Retreat across Albania; more than 1,000,000 Serbs died during World War I.

On 28 June 1914 the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian Nationalist and member of the Young Bosnia organization, led to Austria-Hungary declaring war on Serbia.^[38] In defense of its ally Serbia, Russia started to mobilize its troops, which resulted in Austria-Hungary's ally Germany declaring war on Russia. The retaliation by Austria-Hungary against Serbia activated a series of military alliances that set off a chain reaction of war declarations across the continent, leading to the outbreak of World War I within a month.^[39]

Serbia won the first major battles of World War I, including the Battle of Cer and Battle of Kolubara – marking the first Allied victories against the Central Powers in World War I.^[40] Despite initial success, it was eventually overpowered by the joint forces of the German Empire, Austria-Hungary and Bulgaria in 1915. Most of its army and some people went into exile to Greece and Corfu, where they recovered, regrouped and returned to the Macedonian front to lead a final breakthrough through enemy lines on 15 September 1918, liberating Serbia and defeating the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Bulgaria.^[41] Serbia, with its campaign, was a major Balkan Entente Power^[42] which contributed significantly to the Allied victory in the Balkans in November 1918, especially by helping France force Bulgaria's capitulation.^[43] Serbia was classified as a minor Entente power.^[44] Serbia was also among the main contributors to the capitulation of Austria-Hungary in Central Europe.

Serbia's casualties accounted for 8% of the total Entente military deaths; 58% (243,600) soldiers of the Serbian army perished in the war.^[45] The total number of casualties is placed around 1,000,000,^[46] more than 25% of Serbia's prewar size,^[39] and a majority (57%) of its overall male population.^[47][48][49]

First Yugoslavia[link]

Universal Newsreel's film about the assassination of King Alexander I committed by the IMRO militant Vlado Chernozemski in 1934.

At the end of World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed. On 29 October 1918, Syrmia became a part of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs. On 25 November 1918, the Assembly of Vojvodina proclaimed the unification of Vojvodina (Banat, Bačka and Baranja) with the Kingdom of Serbia. One day before this, on 24 November, the Assembly of Syrmia also proclaimed the unification of Syrmia with Serbia. On 1 December 1918, Vojvodina officially became part of the Kingdom. On 26 November 1918, the Podgorica Assembly deposed the House of Petrović-Njegoš of the Kingdom of Montenegro, opting for the House of Karađorđević, unifying the two states. Also, Bosnia declares its unification with Serbia.

On December 1, 1918, Serbian Prince Regent Alexander of Serbia proclaimed the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. Alexander’s father, Peter I of Serbia, became king of the new state. In November 1920, with the major boundary disputes resolved, a constituent assembly was finally elected and convened and the assembly adopted a constitution in June 1921. The new kingdom was to be a highly centralized and unitary state ruled by a Serb king and predominantly Serb government. Alexander became king after Petar died in August 1921.

Serb centralists and Croat federalists clashed in the parliament, and most governments were fragile and short-lived. Nikola Pašić, leader of the Serb Radical Party and prime minister of Serbia before and during World War I, headed or dominated most governments until his death. In 1921 and 1922 Yugoslavia became a member of the Little Entente. In June 1928, a Montenegrin Radical Party deputy opened fire on the floor of the parliament. He shot and killed two Croat deputies and fatally wounded Stjepan Radić. This action completed the breach between Croats and Serbs.

King Alexander changed the name of the country to Kingdom of Yugoslavia and changed the internal divisions from the 33 oblasts to nine new banovinas. The effect of Alexander's dictatorship was to further alienate the non-Serbs from the idea of unity.^[50] The king was assassinated in Marseille during an official visit to France in 1934 by an experienced marksman from IMRO with the cooperation of the Ustaše. Alexander was succeeded by his eleven-year-old son Peter II and a regency council headed by his cousin, Prince Paul.

Prime Minister Milan Stojadinović showed growing sympathy for fascist forms of government and was dissmied by Prince Paul. The regent then encouraged the new prime minister, Dragiša Cvetković, to negotiate a solution to the Croatian problem with Vladko Macek. In August 1939 the Cvetković–Maček Agreement established an autonomous Banate of Croatia. In effect, Yugoslavia became a federation with two units: Croatia and the rest. Serb hopes of achieving similar status were put on hold by the outbreak of World War II.

World War II and Second Yugoslavia[link]

Marshal Josip Broz Tito reviewing the 1st Partisan Proletarian Brigade.

In 1941, in spite of domestically unpopular attempts by the government of Yugoslavia to appease the Axis powers, Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and other Axis states invaded Yugoslavia. After the invasion, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was dissolved and Serbia was put under a German Military administration, under a joint German-Serb government with Milan Nedić as Head of the "Government of National Salvation". Serbia was the scene of a civil war between royalist chetniks commanded by Draža Mihailović and communist partisans commanded by Josip Broz Tito. Against these forces were arrayed Nedić's units of the Serbian Volunteer Corps and the Serbian State Guard.^{[citation needed]}

After one year of occupation, around 16,000 Serbian Jews were murdered in Axis-occupied Serbia, or around 90% of its pre-war Jewish population. Many concentration camps were established acrros the country. Banjica concentration camp was the biggest and one of the first^{[citation needed]} concentration camps for Jews in Europe. Primary victims were Serbian Jews, Roma, and Serb political prisoners.^[51]

Chetnik leader Draža Mihailović confers with his men.

Axis puppet state of the Independent State of Croatia committed large scale persecution and genocide of Serbs, Jews, and Roma.^[52] The estimate of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum indicates that between 330,000 and 390,000 ethnic Serb residents of Croatia, Bosnia and parts of Serbia were murdered during the Ustaše genocide campaign;^[53] same figures are supported by the Jewish Virtual Library.^[54][55] reports that more than 500,000 Serbs were killed overall, whereas official Yugoslav sources used to estimate more than 700,000 victims, mostly Serbs. The Jasenovac memorial so far lists 82,085 names killed at the this concentration camp alone,^[56] out of around 100,000 estimated victims (75% of whom were of Serbian origin).^[57]

Out of roughly 1,000,000 casualties in all of Yugoslavia up until 1944,^[58][59] around 250,000 were citizens of Serbia of different ethnicities, according to Zundhauzen.^[60] The overall number of Serb casualties in Yugoslavia was around 530,000, out of whom up to 400,000 in the Independent State of Croatia.^[61] The Republic of Užice was a short-lived liberated Yugoslav territory established by the Partisans and the first liberated territory in World War II Europe, organized as a military mini-state that existed in the autumn of 1941 in the west of occupied Serbia. By late 1944, the Belgrade Offensive swung in favour of the partisans in the civil war; the partisans subsequently gained control of Yugoslavia.^[62] The Syrmia front was the last sequence of the internal war in Serbia following the Belgrade Offensive. Between 70,000–80,000 people were killed in Serbia during the communist takeover.^{[63][64][65][66]}

The communist takeover by the Yugoslav Partisans resulted in abolition of the monarchy and a subsequent orchestrated constitutional referendum.^[67] A single-party state was soon established in Yugoslavia by the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. All opposition was repressed and people deemed to be promoting opposition to the government or promoting separatism were given harsh prison sentences or executed for sedition. Serbia became a constituent republic within the SFRY known as the Socialist Republic of Serbia and had a republic-branch of the federal Communist party, the League of Communists of Serbia.

Serbia's most powerful and influential politician in Tito-era Yugoslavia was Aleksandar Ranković, one of the "big four" Yugoslav leaders, alongside Josip Broz Tito, Edvard Kardelj, and Milovan Đilas.^[68] In 1950, Ranković as minister of interior reported that since 1945 the Yugoslav communist regime had arrested five million people.^[69] Ranković was later removed from the office because of the disagreements regarding Kosovo’s nomenklatura and the interests of Serb unity.^[68] Ranković's dismissal was highly unpopular amongst Serbs.^[70]