Republic of Montenegro (1992–2006) in the context of "Serbia and Montenegro"

Montenegro is a country in Southeast Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Its 25 municipalities have a total population of 633,158 people in an area of 13,883 km (5,360 sq mi). It is bordered by Serbia to the northeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Kosovo to the east, Albania to the southeast, and Croatia to the west, and has a coastline along the Adriatic Sea to the southwest. The capital and largest city is Podgorica, while Cetinje is the Old Royal Capital and cultural centre.

Before the arrival of the Slav peoples in the Balkans in the 6th and 7th centuries CE, the area now known as Montenegro was inhabited principally by people known as Illyrians.During the Early Medieval period, three principalities were located on the territory of modern-day Montenegro: Duklja, roughly corresponding to the southern half; Travunia, the west; and Rascia proper, the north. The Principality of Zeta emerged in the 14th and 15th centuries. From the late 14th century to the late 18th century, large parts of southern Montenegro were ruled by the Venetian Republic and incorporated into Venetian Albania. The name Montenegro was first used to refer to the country in the late 15th century. After falling under Ottoman Empire rule, Montenegro gained semi-autonomy in 1696 under the rule of the House of Petrović-Njegoš, first as a theocracy and later as a secular principality. Montenegro's independence was recognised by the Great Powers at the Congress of Berlin in 1878. In 1910, the country became a kingdom. After World War I, the kingdom became part of Yugoslavia. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, the republics of Serbia and Montenegro together proclaimed a federation. In June 2006 Montenegro declared its independence following a referendum.

An independence referendum was held in Montenegro on 21 May 2006. It was approved by 55.5% of voters, narrowly passing the 55% threshold. By 23 May, preliminary referendum results were recognized by all five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, suggesting widespread international recognition if Montenegro were to become formally independent. On 31 May the referendum commission officially confirmed the results of the referendum, verifying that 55.5% of valid votes were in favor of independence. Because voters met the controversial threshold requirement of 55% approval, the referendum was incorporated into a declaration of independence during a special parliamentary session on 31 May. The Assembly of the Republic of Montenegro made a formal Declaration of Independence on Saturday, 3 June.

In response to the announcement, the government of Serbia declared itself the legal and political successor of Serbia and Montenegro, and that the government and parliament of Serbia itself would soon adopt a new constitution. The United States, China, Russia, and the institutions of the European Union all expressed their intentions to respect the referendum's results.

Prevlaka (pronounced [prɛ̂ʋlaka]) is a small peninsula in southern Croatia, near the border with Montenegro, at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor on the eastern Adriatic coast.

Because of its strategic location in the southern Adriatic, in the aftermath of the SFR Yugoslav breakup, the peninsula became subject to a territorial dispute between Croatia and FR Yugoslavia, a federal state that included Montenegro. The territory was functional under UN until 2002. The UN mission ended in December 2002 and the territory that had previously been part of SR Croatia was returned to the Republic of Croatia. An agreement was signed by both sides five days before the departure of the UNMOP that demilitarized Prevlaka, though implementation still has a temporary character.

General elections were held in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia on 24 September 2000. They included the presidential election, which was held using the two-round system, with a second round scheduled for 8 October. After the first round, the Federal Electoral Commission announced that Vojislav Koštunica of the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) was just short of the majority of all votes cast needed to avoid a runoff against the runner-up and incumbent president Slobodan Milošević. However, the DOS coalition claimed that Koštunica had received 52.54% of the vote. This led to open conflict between the opposition and government. The opposition organised demonstrations in Belgrade on 5 October 2000, after which Milošević resigned on 7 October and conceded the presidency to Koštunica. Subsequently released revised election results showed Koštunica with slightly over 51% of all votes cast.

In the Federal Assembly elections, DOS emerged as the largest faction in the Chamber of Citizens, whilst the Socialist People's Party of Montenegro won the most seats in the Chamber of Republics. The elections were boycotted by the ruling coalition of Montenegro, led by the Democratic Party of Socialists.