civil war that gripped the country.
The Taliban seized Kabul in 1996 and were able to capture most of
the country outside of Northern Alliance strongholds primarily in
the northeast. Following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, a
US, Allied, and Northern Alliance military action toppled the
Taliban for sheltering Osama BIN LADIN. In late 2001, a conference
in Bonn, Germany, established a process for political reconstruction
that ultimately resulted in the adoption of a new constitution and
presidential election in 2004. On 9 October 2004, Hamid KARZAI
became the first democratically elected president of Afghanistan.
The new Afghan government's next task is to hold National Assembly
elections, tentatively scheduled for April 2005.

Akrotiri
By terms of the 1960 Treaty of Establishment that created
the independent Republic of Cyprus, the UK retained full sovereignty
and jurisdiction over two areas of almost 254 square kilometers in
total: Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The southernmost and smallest of these
is the Akrotiri Sovereign Base Area, which is also referred to as
the Western Sovereign Base Area.

Albania
Between 1990 and 1992 Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic
Communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The
transition has proven difficult as successive governments have tried
to deal with high unemployment, widespread corruption, a dilapidated
infrastructure, powerful organized crime networks with links to
government officials, and disruptive political opponents. Albania
has made incremental progress in its democratic development since
first holding multiiparty elections in 1991, but deficiencies remain
- particularly in regard to the rule of law. Despite some lingering
problems, international observers have judged elections to be
largely free and fair since the restoration of political stability
following the collapse of pyramid schemes in 1997. In the 2005
general elections, the Democratic Party and its allies won a
decisive victory on pledges of reducing crime and corruption,
promoting economic growth, and decreasing the size of government.
Although Albania's economy continues to grow, the country is still
one of the poorest in Europe, hampered by a large informal economy,
large public debt, and an inadequate energy and tranportation
infrastructure. Albania has played a largely helpful role in
managing inter-ethnic tension