The State Union of 'Serbia and Montenegro' (, abbreviated as СЦГ / ''SCG''), was a
union of '
Serbia' and '
Montenegro', which existed between 2003 and 2006. The two republics, both of which are former republics of the
SFR Yugoslavia, initially formed the
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1992. In 2003, the FRY was reconstituted as a State Union Serbia and Montenegro.
On
May 21,
2006, Montenegro held
a referendum to seek full independence. Final official results indicated on
May 31 that 55.5% of voters had elected to become independent. The state union effectively came to an end after Montenegro's formal declaration of independence on
June 3,
2006 and Serbia's formal declaration of independence on
June 5. Many view this as symbolizing the final end of what was left from the former
Yugoslavia.
A loose confederation, Serbia and Montenegro was a union only in certain political areas (e.g. defence). The states had separate economic policies and currencies. The country did not have a unified capital, dividing its common institutions between
Belgrade in Serbia and
Podgorica in Montenegro.
History
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
February 4,
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 3,
2006 and the Serbian proclamation of independence on
June 5 ended the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro and thus the last remaining vestiges of the former
Yugoslavia.
Administrative divisions
Main articles: Subdivisions of Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was composed of two republics. Serbia, meanwhile, had two subordinate autonomous provinces. The structure of Serbia and Montenegro:
★
Serbia (capital:
Belgrade)
★
★
Vojvodina – autonomous province within Serbia (capital:
Novi Sad)
★
★
Kosovo and Metohija – autonomous province under
United Nations administration (capital:
Priština)
★
Montenegro (capital:
Podgorica)
The country's political and administrative capital was
Belgrade, while its judicial capital was
Podgorica.
Geography
Map of Serbia-Montenegro
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, which also possessed the only
fjord in southern Europe. 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,
Priština, and
Prizren, each with populations of about 100,000-250,000 people.
Demographics
Main articles: Demographics of Serbia and Montenegro
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 population lived in the
Sandžak region on the border between
Serbia and
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)
★
★
Priština: 200,000 (2002 estimation)
★
★
Niš: 173,390 (234,863 metro)
★
★
Kragujevac: 145,890 (175,182 metro)
★
★
Podgorica: 139,500 (169,000 metro)
★
★
Prizren: 121,000 (2002 estimation)
★
★
Subotica: 99,471 (147,758 metro)
According to an estimate from 2004, the State Union had 10,825,900 inhabitants.
According to a July of 2006 estimate, the State Union had 10,832,545 inhabitants.
Economy
Main articles: Economy of Serbia and Montenegro
An extended period of economic sanctions, and the 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 into the international community by rejoining the
World Bank (IBRD) and the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). 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 have 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 used the
euro, 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.
Transportation
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 FYRO 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 largest seaport is Montenegro's
Bar.
Holidays in Serbia and Montenegro
;Holidays celebrated only in Serbia
★
February 15 - Sretenje (
National Day, non-working)
;Holidays celebrated only in Montenegro
★
July 13 - Statehood Day (non-working)
Proposed Flag & Anthem
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 [
[1]] 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. [
[2]] However the parliament failed to vote on the proposal within the legal timeframe 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. [
[3]] 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 contests
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. Following this event, this team has been inherited by Serbia, while a
new one was to be organised to represent Montenegro in future international competitions.
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. It is unknown if the two countries would field two different candidates in the pageant's succeeding editions.
See also
★
Beer in Serbia and Montenegro
★
Communications in Serbia and Montenegro
★
Demographics of Serbia and Montenegro
★
Foreign relations of Serbia and Montenegro
★
Geography of Serbia and Montenegro
★
List of football clubs in Serbia and Montenegro
★
Politics of Serbia and Montenegro
★
Military of Serbia and Montenegro
★
Music of Serbia and Montenegro
★
Savez Izviđača Srbije i Crne Gore
★
Serbia and Montenegro national football team
★
List of national border changes since the twentieth century
External links
★
Profile: Serbia and Montenegro at
BBC News
★
Project Rastko, a site about
Serb Orthodox culture in Serbia and Montenegro
العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
Español
