The Cold War enters its final, thawing phase, as landmark US-Soviet diplomacy neutralises the threat of nuclear conflict. Brutal crackdowns and uprisings violently reshape the map; from the bloodshed of Tiananmen Square and NATO's intervention in Kosovo to the volatile Arab Spring in Yemen. Alongside these massive geopolitical shifts, intense media scrutiny dissects the flawed justifications for the Iraq War, and the world marks the passing of boxing and civil rights icon Muhammad Ali. All is charted in this week’s archive snapshot of The Independent.
