January 15 – Amnesty International
Amnesty International releases satellite images that show near total destruction of two towns, Baga and Doron Baga in northeastern Nigeria, after attacks by Boko Haram militants. According to Amnesty International this is the largest and most destructive attack yet by the militants who shoot hundreds of civilians, almost completely destroy the towns, and drive thousands across the border as refugees. Boko Haram fighters have repeatedly attacked communities looking for perceived collaborators with the security forces. (January 29): Chadian forces drive Boko Haram militants from the town of Malumfatori, one of Nigeria’s most remote towns in the northeast near the borders with Chad and Niger. Boko Haram fighters have been carrying out multiple cross-border attacks on Nigeria’s neighbors.
February 18 – UNAMA
United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reports that the year 2014 was the deadliest year for Afghanistan’s civilians since the UN started keeping records in 2007. A total of 3,699 civilians were killed and 6,849 injured in 2014, a 22 percent increase from the previous year. These casualties are the result of increased fighting between Afghan government forces and the Taliban, as well as a significant decrease of number of Western troops.
March 11 – International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approves a $17.5 billion rescue package for Ukraine to help stabilize its economy. Last month, the European Union agreed to provide $2 billion in loans to Ukraine, while the United States has pledged $2 billion in loan guarantees. As a prerequisite for the loan, the Ukrainian parliament approved a reform package that modifies tax and energy laws, as well as introduces changes to the government’s budget. Due to the military operations in the east, deteriorating relations with Russia, Ukraine’s largest trading partner, and plunging foreign investment, inflation in Ukraine skyrocketed and its currency, the hryvnia, lost 80 percent of its value since last April.
April 2 – United Nations
Negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program between Iran and “P5+1” (five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council – China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, and the United States, plus Germany) conclude with a framework agreement. According to the deal, to which negotiations began in 2006, Iran agrees to restrict some of its uranium enrichment program and allow international inspections. In exchange, certain economic sanctions imposed on Iran will be lifted. The details of the plan are supposed to be negotiated by June 2015.
April 14 – United Nations
The United Nations Security Council passes a resolution that demands the Houthi rebels in Yemen to withdraw seized areas. It also imposes an arms embargo on the Houthis and their allies, such as Yemen’s former President Ali Saleh. (April 22): Hundreds of people are killed and several thousands are injured during the bombings by Saudi Arabia and its coalition aimed at defeating the Houthis and restoring Yemen’s president.
June 7-8 – G7
Members of G7 organization meet for the 41st Summit in Germany to discuss global economy and other key issues, including militant threats posed by terrorist groups such as Islamic State (IS), Greece’s economic crisis, climate change, and support for continued sanction on Russia. G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, and United States. Presidents of the European Commission and European Council are permanently welcomed participants. Russia has been excluded from what it used to be G8 after it invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea.
July 8 – United Nations
Russia vetoes a United Nations Security Council draft resolution that described the Srebrenica massacre as genocide. Ten members of the Council voted in favor, with China, Nigeria, Angola and Venezuela abstaining. Republika Srpska, one of the federal states within Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Serbia lobbied for the veto. Russia is considered an ally of Serbia. The Srebrenica massacre took place in July 1995 during the Bosnian War. In Srebrenica and many towns and villages around it, units of the Bosnian Serb Army of Republika Srpska under the command of General Ratko Mladić and a paramilitary unit from Serbia killed more than 8,000 Muslim Bosniaks, mainly men and boys.
July 14 – United Nations
After 20 months of negotiations, world powers (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, China, Russia, and Germany) reach a long-term agreement with Iran that limits its nuclear activity in return for lifting economic sanctions by the international community. The deal allows the United Nations (UN) nuclear inspectors monitor and inspect Iranian nuclear sites and puts other checks in place to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. In exchange, Iran will regain its frozen assets oversees and will resume selling its oil on international markets. In the U.S the agreement has to be approved by Congress, where it faces strong opposition from the Republican legislatures.
July 29 – United Nations
Russia uses its veto as a member of the Security Council at the United Nations to block a draft resolution that calls for setting up an international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for downing the Malaysian plane MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014. Russia is the only country in the 15-member UN Security Council to do so. It is believed and there is evidence that the plane was hit by a missile fired by pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine. The anti-aircraft missile was produced and supplied by Russia.
August 4 – Amnesty International
Amnesty International accuses Sudan’s government forces of committing war crimes in its southern region of South Kordofan, where they have been fighting rebels who have been demanding more rights for their region since 2011. Amnesty finds that the Sudanese armed forces have been deliberately targeting civilian population, schools, hospitals, and relief groups in South Kordofan. It has also used cluster munition and other prohibited weapons. The conflict has claimed hundreds of lives and caused a humanitarian crisis.
August 26 – United Nations
South Sudan’s president, Salva Kiir, reluctantly signs an internationally-mediated peace agreement to end the country’s civil war. The fighting began in December 2013, when President Kiir dismissed Vice President Riek Machar, accusing him of plotting a coup. Since then forces loyal to the president clashed with forces loyal to former vice president and rebel leader Riek Machar. The conflict displaced over 2 million people. According to the deal, fighting is supposed to stop immediately, Riek Machar will return to the post of first vice president, a transitional government of national unity will govern for 30 months with elections held 60 days before the end of its mandate, and the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing will investigate human rights violations.
September 17 – HALO Trust
The government of Mozambique announces that after 22 years of work the country is now mine-free. With the help of the HALO Trust, the humanitarian landmine clearance organization, 171,000 landmines have been removed from over 1,100 minefields that were the legacy of Mozambique’s 15-year civil war. The war began in 1977, two years after the end of the war of independence, and ended in 1992, but mines continued to kill and injure hundreds of civilians each year after the war. The demining has cleared over 183 million square feet of land that now can be used for agriculture and infrastructure development.
September 30 – United Nations
For the first time, a Palestinian flag is raised outside the headquarters of the United Nations in New York after the General Assembly adopted a resolution that permits non-member observer states to fly their flags alongside those of full member states. The move is criticized by Israel and the United States. For the Palestinians, this historic event is the next step toward being recognized as a state by the international community.
December 2 – NATO
Montenegro becomes the 29th member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Montenegro’s membership in NATO shows a dramatic transformation of this small country, which 16 years ago, during the Kosovo war, was bombed by the same organization it now joins. Montenegro hopes that the presence of NATO in its region will solidify its recent stability. Russia, on the other hand, protests NATO’s expansion eastward and threatens with retaliation.
December 12 – 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference
After two weeks of intense negotiations, the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference ends with the Paris Agreement. The conference gathered representatives of 195 countries to discuss how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to stop dangerous climate warming caused by human activities. The Paris Agreement includes the following elements: to reduce carbon output as soon as possible; to keep global temperatures below 2.0 degrees C (3.6F) compared to preindustrial levels; to review each country’s progress towards cutting emissions every five years; to provide financial aid to developing countries that would allow them to implement new procedures to slow down climate change and switch to renewable energy. The critics of the agreement say that significant parts of it are based on promises rather than firm commitments by the countries.
December 18 – African Union
The African Union (AU) approves a plan to deploy 5,000 peacekeeping troops in Burundi to protect civilians amid escalating unrest between the government and rebel forces. The violence started after President Pierre Nkurunziza announced he would run for a third term in office and escalated after his win in the controversial election. The AU charter allows the organization to deploy troops even without a country’s consent in the case of circumstances such as war crimes or genocide.