SERB REPUBLIC OF KRAJINA Meaning and
Definition
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The Serb Republic of Krajina, also known as the Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK), was a self-proclaimed state located in the western region of former Yugoslavia. It emerged amidst the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, specifically during the Croatian War of Independence.
The Serb Republic of Krajina was formed by the ethnic Serbian population residing in the largely Serbian-populated regions of Croatia, primarily in the region known as Krajina, which translates to "frontier" or "borderland" in English. The state claimed independence from Croatia, with its capital located in Knin.
The RSK was predominantly inhabited by ethnic Serbs and aimed to establish an autonomous region within Croatia or unite with neighboring Republika Srpska, another self-proclaimed state primarily consisting of ethnic Serbs located in Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, its claim for independence was not recognized internationally, and most countries, including the UN, considered it to be part of the sovereign territory of Croatia.
The Serb Republic of Krajina lasted from 1991 until 1995 when Croatian forces conducted a military operation known as Operation Storm, recapturing the territory and effectively ending the existence of the self-proclaimed state. This led to a mass exodus of Serb inhabitants from the region. Currently, the region is part of the Republic of Croatia.
