1991 — Macedonia declares independence from Yugoslavia. The country name is disputed by Greece, which has a province of Macedonia. This dispute slows international recognition of the country's independence. A new constitution is ratified despite protest from large Albanian population.
1992 — Ethnic tension grows in the new nation as Albanians rally for their own independent territory. Albanians make up a quarter of Macedonia's population. The UN sends troops to Macedonia to quell rising tension.
1993 — The UN formally recognizes the nation as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM ), and it becomes a member state.
1994 — Conflict with Greece continues as it imposes trade restrictions on Macedonia. These have significant economic impact on the new country.
1995 — President Gligorov is injured in an unsuccessful assassination attempt. Greece finally recognizes Macedonia's independence, lifting trade restrictions and easing economic woes.
1997 — Parliament restricts the use of the Albanian flag, sparking protest by ethnic Albanians and fueling the already rising tensions between the government and the minority group. In July, two Albanians are shot and killed while demonstrating against the new restrictions.
1998 — During the elections this year, several Albanians are elected as representatives in the government.
March 1999 — The BBC reports, "Nato begins bombing campaign against Yugoslavia over its treatment of Kosovo Albanians. Serbian mass expulsion and killings of Kosovo Albanians leads to exodus into neighbouring countries, including Macedonia."
November 1999 — Macedonia elects Boris Trajkovski as president.
February 2001 — The U.S. State Department reports, "Tensions erupted into open hostilities in Macedonia in February 2001, when a group of ethnic Albanians near the Kosovo border carried out armed provocations that soon escalated into an insurgency. Purporting to fight for greater civil rights for ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, the group seized territory and launched attacks against government forces. Many observers ascribed other motives to the so-called National Liberation Army (NLA), including support for criminality and the assertion of political control over affected areas. The insurgency spread through northern and western Macedonia during the first half of 2001."
April 2001 — Macedonia signs a Stabilization and Association Agreement with the EU, granting it free access to all European markets.
July 2001 — With the help of international mediation, a cease-fire is agreed upon between the NLA and the government. Along with this agreement came a government expansion that formed a coalition more inclusive to opposition parties.
August 2001 — The Ohrid Peace Agreement is signed by NLA and government officials, promising equal rights in exchange for an end to the violence.
September 2001 — The BBC reports, NATO exceeds its target of collecting 3,300 weapons from rebels during its month-long disarmament program.
October 2001 — The National Liberation Army disbands, and four key members are granted amnesty by the government.
November 2001 — A new constitution is ratified in accordance with the August peace agreement, which recognizes Albanian as an official language and increases access to public-sector jobs for Albanians.
January 2002 — Local governments are given more power from Parliament in order to better address lingering ethnic disparities in specific areas of the country.
September 2002 — Branko Crvenkovski becomes prime minister.
March 2003 — NATO troops leave the country; the European Union continues peacekeeping efforts.
April 2003 — Macedonia becomes a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
February 2004 — President Boris Trajkovski is killed in a plane crash. In April, Prime Minister Crvenkovski is elected president.
March 2004 — Macedonia applies to join the EU.
June 2004 — Hari Kostov, former interior minister, becomes the new prime minister.
July 2004 — While tensions with Albanian minorities are decreasing in Macedonia, discrimination against other ethnic groups is still a problem, as evidenced by the beatings of two Roma men in Skopje by Macedonian police. The European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) files a complaint, but nothing has been resolved as of 2008.
August 2004 — The BBC reports, "Parliament approves legislation redrawing local boundaries and giving ethnic Albanians greater local autonomy in areas where they predominate." The legislation is opposed by Macedonian nationalists, who fail to have the legislation overturned.
November 2004 — Kostov resigns as prime minister, saying that he did not want to be preoccupied further with the minority rights legislation. Defense Minister Vlado Buckovski replaces him the following month.
July 2005 — Albanians are granted the right to fly the Albanian flag in territories where the group forms the majority of citizens.
December 2005 — Macedonia is officially a candidate for EU accession. The EU urges Macedonia to continue to combat corruption in advance of their induction into the Union.
July 2006 — The BBC reports, "Nikola Gruevski, leader of the centre-right VMRO-DPMNE party, asked to form a government after reaching coalition agreement with Democratic Party of Albanians and three small parties following general elections."
A former World Bank economist, Gruevski vows to combat corruption and organized crime and also works on making Macedonia an attractive investment location for businesses . According to the U.S. State Department, this round of parliamentary elections are quite violent as well as inconsistent, with reports of voter intimidation, ballot fixing, and attacks on campaign offices.
April 2007 — Former interior minister Ljube Boskovski is tried in The Hague on charges of war crimes stemming from his involvement with the 2001 ethnic violence.
June 2007 — Freedom House reports, "17 journalists won a case against the Interior Ministry and Macedonian Telecommunications for the illegal tapping of their telephones in 2000. Each journalist was awarded roughly $7,000." Prime Minister Gruevski hires Romanian anti-corruption expert Monica Macovei to advise him personally. Macovei helped Romania combat corruption before its 2007 EU accession.
August 2007 — Former Prime Minister Vlado Buckovski loses his immunity and faces criminal charges of embezzlement and abuse of position stemming from actions in 2001 when he was defense minister.
September 2007 — Two television journalists, reporting on stories covering members of Parliament, are injured by police in separate incidents.
April 2008 — At the Bucharest summit , all NATO members vote to extend an invitation to Macedonia to join the alliance. The move is blocked by Greece, over lingering disputes over the country name.
June 2008 — Elections are marred with violence, and a re-vote is required in Albanian territories.
Global Integrity uses a