Among the many provisions, the treaty requires that Italy return the Dodecanese islands to Greece. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
All year, we've been highlighting historical news events—and Foreign Affairs articles about those events—as part of our "This Day in History" series. Here are our collected selections for May.
The al Qaeda leader is killed in Pakistan during a raid by the Navy Seals. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Mayday Tribe begins four days of demonstrations in Washington D.C. aimed at shutting down the nation's capital. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat sign a peace accord granting self-rule in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank's Jericho region. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
NASA launches the first American, Navy commander Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr., into space. Russia's Yuri Gagarin had accomplished the feat only a few weeks earlier. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The German passenger airship catches fire during its attempt to dock A total of 36 die. The disaster ended the airship era. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Leonid I. Brezhnev, a confidant of Premier Nikita Kruzchev, succeeds Kliment Y. Voroshilov as Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, or president of the Soviet Union. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The United States and the United Kingdom celebrate the Allies' acceptance of Germany's unconditional surrender, ending World War II in Europe. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
U.S. President Barack Obama declares his support, saying, "At a certain point I've just concluded that for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married." Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Winston Churchill replaces Neville Chamberlain following the latter’s resignation. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
India detonates three underground nuclear bombs in Pokhran, not far from the border with Pakistan, its first test since 1974. It exploded two more bombs on May 13. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Soviet Union ends its restrictions on areas of Allied-occupied Berlin. The blockade began on March 25, 1948 and was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
In a speech before parliament, Winston Churchill declares, “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.” Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
David Ben-Gurion, Israel's founder and later its first prime minister, announces, “We hereby proclaim the establishment of the Jewish state in Palestine, to be called Israel." Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Soviet Union begins pulling out combat forces from Afghanistan. The Soviet-Afghan War began in December 1979. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
China and the Soviet Union hold a summit between Deng Xiaoping, Zhao Ziyang, and Mikhail Gorbachev, the first after 30 years. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The U.S. Supreme Court delivers a unanimous ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
India successfully tests its first nuclear weapon in the Rajasthan Desert. The blast made it the first nuclear country outside of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Kuomintang government, led by Chiang Kai-shek, imposes martial law. It lasts for nearly four decades. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The first camp at Auschwitz, Nazi Germany's largest camp complex, is opened. Two more are constructed in the following years. More than one million lose their lives there. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
After the Civil War ends in Ethopia, Mengistu Haile Mariam resigns and finds refuge in Zimbabwe under President Robert Mugabe. An Ethiopian court later convicted Mengistu of genocide. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Italy and Germany sign the Pact of Steel, a political and military alliance that will later include Japan. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Mohammad Khatami Is Elected President of Iran. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Eritrean People's Liberation Front forces liberate the capital of Asmara following a 30-year-long battle against the Ethiopian military regime. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Gulf Cooperation Council is founded in Abu Dhabi. Its members include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
In an effort to prevent an arms race, U.S. President Richard Nixon and Soviet Leader Leonid Brezhnev sign a pact in Moscow to limit the building of ballistic missile defense systems to only two sites. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
In response to Nazi Germany's threats to conquer the world, President Franklin D. Roosevelt delivers a radio address in which he argues that the United States should aid Europe in the war. In his speech, he repeats his famous line, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Kenya establishes its first elected government, with Jomo Kenyatta as Prime Minister. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Russia's Congress of People's Deputies elects Boris Yeltsin as president. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
Charles Taylor, former President of Liberia, is sentenced to 50 years in prison. Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
The Soviet Union signs an agreement with China, referring to Outer Mongolia as an "integral part of the Republic of China" and promising to respect the region's "sovereignty." Read more about it in the Foreign Affairs archive.
