A country that doesn't exist — and the 7 that replaced it.

Thirty years ago this was one nation. Then it split into seven.

Slovenia — independent after a war that lasted barely 10 days

Croatia — years of fighting before independence, now a top European coastal destination

Bosnia and Herzegovina — home to Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats; Sarajevo endured the longest siege in modern European history

Serbia — the core and capital of the old state, the last republic to separate

Montenegro — voted for independence in a 2006 referendum decided by the thinnest of margins

North Macedonia — left without firing a shot, renamed itself in 2019 to end a feud with Greece

Kosovo — declared independence from Serbia in 2008, recognized by roughly half the world

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Yugoslavia split into seven states: Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Kosovo. Each left on its own timeline — Slovenia's war lasted barely ten days, Sarajevo endured the longest siege in modern European history, and Montenegro's 2006 independence referendum was decided by the thinnest of margins. Kosovo, the newest country on Earth, declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and is still recognized by only about half the world.