World War I (1914-1918):
- The collapse of the Russian Empire led to the creation of several independent states, including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Finland, and Ukraine.
- Austria-Hungary disintegrated, resulting in the formation of Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Austria.
World War II (1939-1945):
- The Soviet Union annexed eastern Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and parts of Romania and Czechoslovakia.
- Germany occupied Poland and parts of Czechoslovakia.
Post-World War II Settlement:
- The Yalta Conference (1945) and the Potsdam Conference (1945) determined the new boundaries of Eastern Europe.
- The Soviet Union gained control over much of Eastern Europe, establishing satellite states known as the Eastern Bloc.
Collapse of Communism:
- In 1989, the Berlin Wall fell, symbolizing the decline of Soviet power in Eastern Europe.
- This led to a series of revolutions and the eventual collapse of communist governments in Eastern Bloc countries.
Dissolution of the Soviet Union (1991):
- The Soviet Union dissolved into 15 independent states, including Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic states.
Yugoslav Wars (1991-2001):
- The breakup of Yugoslavia resulted in the creation of several new states, including Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia.
- Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, although its status remains disputed.