in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role -
were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict
between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on
alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah.

Taiwan
In 1895, military defeat forced China to cede Taiwan to
Japan. Taiwan reverted to Chinese control after World War II.
Following the Communist victory on the mainland in 1949, 2 million
Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established a government using the
1946 constitution drawn up for all of China. Over the next five
decades, the ruling authorities gradually democratized and
incorporated the local population within the governing structure. In
2000, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power from the
Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party. Throughout this
period, the island prospered and became one of East Asia's economic
"Tigers." The dominant political issues continue to be the
relationship between Taiwan and China - specifically the question of
eventual unification - as well as domestic political and economic
reform.

Tajikistan
The Tajik people came under Russian rule in the 1860s and
1870s, but Russia's hold on Central Asia weakened following the
Revolution of 1917. Bolshevik control of the area was fiercely
contested and not fully reestablished until 1925. Much of
present-day Sughd province was transferred from the Uzbekistan SSR
to newly formed Tajikistan SSR in 1929. Ethnic Uzbeks form a
substantial minority in Sughd province. Tajikistan became
independent in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union, and
it is now in the process of strengthening its democracy and
transitioning to a free market economy after its 1992-97 civil war.
There have been no major security incidents in recent years,
although the country remains the poorest in the former Soviet
sphere. Attention by the international community in the wake of the
war in Afghanistan has brought increased economic development and
security assistance, which could create jobs and increase stability
in the long term. Tajikistan is in the early stages of seeking World
Trade Organization membership and has joined NATO's Partnership for
Peace.

Tanzania
Shortly after achieving independence from Britain in the
early 1960s, Tanganyika and Zanzibar merged to form the nation of
Tanzania in 1964. One-pa