Croatia were part of Marshal Tito’s Yugoslavia, a socialist federation.
Zagreb and Adriatic coast are a dreamland for holidays in the Mediterranean
surroundings .
Green parks, fountains, avenues of trees and flowers are impressive sights
throughout the city.
Historically, the Ottoman Empire had been predominant in Bosnia, Serbia and
Herzegovina. It was replaced by European powers, resulting in Austrian-
controlled Bosnia and Russian patronized Serbia.
During 1914 a Serbian nationalist assassinated the heir to Austro-Hungarian
throne while he was being honoured at a reception.
This set a chain of diplomatic events that raised the scale of conflict among
many nations bound by alliances.
What was considered to be a limited battle between the accuser and the
accused (Austria-Hungary vs. Serbia) soon escalated into the beginning of
World War 1.
After World War 2, Tito was a unifying force that brought unity among the six
Yugoslav nations. As an authoritarian dictator, he successfully controlled their
nationalist aspiration and promoted brotherhood.
Even when deemed a controversial figure, he was a unifying force that brought
unity among these nations.
Thus he was the chief architect of a united Yugoslavia which lasted from the
end of World War 2 to 1991.
Tito was also one of the first to defy Soviet domination and followed an
independent approach to socialism, called national socialism.
He gained international attention in doing so and became a leader of the Non-Aligned
Movement, co-founded with Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser, India's Jawaharlal
Nehru, Indonesia's Sukarno and Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah,
In an action called The Initiative of Five, he established strong ties with third
world countries and became the first Secretary-General of the Non-Aligned
Movement in September 1961.
All of these achievements of Tito helped improve Yugoslavia's position
internationally.
His successful diplomatic and economic policies fostered the economic boom of
the 1960s and 1970s in Yugoslavia.
