ABSTRACT
Macedonia is a small, landlocked country which has boundaries with Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Greece and Albania. The Macedonia of Alexander the Great, having been ruled by the Ottomans for 500 years, was divided into three components as a result of the Treaty of Bucharest. At the end of World War I, Vardar Macedonia became part of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, renamed Yugoslavia in October 1929. After World War II, Macedonia became a constituent republic of the Federal Peoples Republic of Yugoslavia (FPRY). In early January 1992, Albanians reacted by demanding political autonomy for their community. Following UN mediation, the dispute with Greece was settled on 15 October 1995 and Macedonia was admitted to full membership of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). In March 1998, the UN Protection Force increased its presence along the border with Yugoslavia. As the war in Kosovo escalated in ferocity, Macedonia assumed a key role.
