Prevlaka

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.

Along with the small Montenegrin island of Mamula, which sits some 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) east of Cape Oštro, in addition to being two sides of an international maritime border, the two spots present observation entry points into the Bay of Kotor.

North of the Prevlaka isthmus, just within the Bay of Kotor, lie the two less prominent capes Konfin and Kobila,[2] to the northwest of which is a road border crossing between Croatia and Montenegro.

[2] In 1806, during Napoleon's conquest of Europe, King Alexander I of Russia was intent on stopping French advances in the Adriatic and to that end deployed a Mediterranean expedition led by vice-admiral Dmitry Senyavin, that by September 1806 made considerable territorial gains in the area, including Prevlaka and the entire Bay of Kotor.

[4] In April 1941 Nazi Germany invaded Yugoslavia, conquering it in less than three weeks before proceeding to dismember its territory by creating a handful of locally-administered fascist puppet states.

Due to its strategic importance, the Axis-aligned Kingdom of Italy under prime minister Benito Mussolini would not let either of the two newly propped up local fascist puppet regimes, the Independent State of Croatia or the Italian governorate of Montenegro, control the Bay of Kotor region.

[4] As World War II dragged on, in summer 1943, in response to the Allied advances in their Italian campaign, Nazi Germany took over the administration of the Bay of Kotor including Prevlaka.

[4] On 22 December 1944, the Yugoslav Partisans took control of the region, and after the war Prevlaka became part of the newly proclaimed FPR Yugoslavia, specifically its constituent unit the People's Republic of Croatia.

The two sides agreed on the demilitarization of the peninsula and the United Nations Security Council Resolution 779 of October 6, 1992 extended the mandate of UNPROFOR to the implementation of this agreement, together with the European Community Monitoring Mission.