Prevlaka
Encyclopedia
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
in southern Croatia, at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor in the eastern Adriatic. The word prevlaka means portage
Portage
Portage or portaging refers to the practice of carrying watercraft or cargo over land to avoid river obstacles, or between two bodies of water. A place where this carrying occurs is also called a portage; a person doing the carrying is called a porter.The English word portage is derived from the...
. The cape Oštro, located at the tip of the peninsula, is the southernmost point of mainland in Croatia.
The peninsula was once subject to a dispute. Following the independence of Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, arguments broke out between itself and the new FR Yugoslavia, as Prevlaka borders Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
. This is mainly because of the strategic position and the proximity of a major naval base
Naval base
A naval base is a military base, where warships and naval ships are deployed when they have no mission at sea or want to restock. Usually ships may also perform some minor repairs. Some naval bases are temporary homes to aircraft that usually stay on the ships but are undergoing maintenance while...
within the Bay of Kotor.
History
The peninsula was a part of the Dubrovnik Republic from the 15th century, who fortified Cape Oštro (the southernmost land point of the area in 1441. During the course of history, the peninsula switched between the Republic of Dubrovnik, to the French to the AustriansAustria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
, until it became a part of Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
in 1918. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the region was controlled between Italy and Germany until the end of the war, where it was incorporated into the SR Croatia.
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
that followed the breakup of Yugoslavia, the territory was occupied by Yugoslav forces like most of the Dubrovnik region during the siege of Dubrovnik
Siege of Dubrovnik
The Siege of Dubrovnik is a term marking the battle and siege of the city of Dubrovnik and the surrounding area in Croatia as part of the Croatian War of Independence. Yugoslav People's Army invaded the Dubrovnik area in October 1991 from Montenegro, Bosnia and even parts of Croatia, surrounding...
. At one point, the Croatian military gained temporary control over Prevlaka, before it was retaken. The two sides agreed on the demilitarization of the peninsula and the United Nations Security Council Resolution 779
United Nations Security Council Resolution 779
United Nations Security Council Resolution 779, adopted unanimously on October 6, 1992, after reaffirming Resolution 743 and subsequent resolutions and noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali submitted pursuant to resolutions 743 and 762 , the Council authorised the United...
of the October 6, 1992 extended the mandate of UNPROFOR to the implementation of this agreement, together with the European Community Monitoring Mission. A resolution to the conflict took shape in 1996 when the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
mediated the conflict and established an observer mission (UNMOP)
United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka
UN Mission of Observers in Prevlaka was established on 15 January 1996 in Security Council Resolution 1038 as a peacekeeping mission to monitor the demilitarization of the disputed Prevlaka peninsula by carrying out daily foot and vehicle patrols on both sides of the border between Croatia and...
which oversaw the demilitarization and acted as a buffer.
The 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 and effectively made it a neutral territory, though implementation is still incomplete. It is in the process of resolution, following negotiations between Croatia and Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
. The two parties have agreed to refer the case to the International Court of Justice
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. It is based in the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands...
.