Soviet soldiers tried to supress 1990 pro-democracy protests

Violent demonstrations force Nabiyev to resign in September; Emomali Rahmonov, a pro-Nabiyev communist, takes over as head of state in November.

1993 - Government re-establishes control, suppresses political opposition and imposes strict media controls; Supreme Court bans all opposition parties, leaving the Communist Party of Tajikistan as the only legal party; CIS peacekeeping force deployed on Tajik-Afghan border to prevent Islamist guerrilla groups infiltrating from bases in Afghanistan.

1994 - Ceasefire between government and rebels agreed; Rahmonov announces willingness to negotiate with opposition; referendum approves draft constitution reinstituting presidential system; Rahmonov elected president in ballot deemed by international observers as neither free nor fair.

1995 - Rahmonov supporters win parliamentary elections; fighting on Afghan border erupts.

1996 - Islamist rebels capture towns in southwestern Tajikistan; UN-sponsored cease-fire between government and rebels comes into effect.

Peace accord

1997 - Government and rebel United Tajik Opposition (UTO) sign peace accord; National Reconciliation Commission, comprising government and opposition members, created to supervise implementation of accord; Rahmonov injured in grenade attack.

1998 - Rahmonov pardons all opposition leaders in exile and agrees to appoint one of the Islamist opposition's leaders as first deputy prime minister. Rebel uprising in north is crushed with the help of former opposition groups.

RAHMON NABIYEV Communist leader won first direct presidential election Member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Head of Tajik communist government 1982-85, 1991-92 Forced to resign in 1992

Tajikistan joins CIS Customs Union.

1999 - Rahmonov re-elected for second term with 96 % of the vote; UTO armed forces integrated into state army; Rahmonov awarded order of Hero of Tajikistan.

2000 - Last meeting of the National Reconciliation Commission held and a new bicameral parliament set up in March; a new national currency, the somoni, introduced; visas introduced for travel between Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

2001 January - Minimum wage tripled to equivalent of just over one US dollar.

2001 April - Deputy Interior Minister Habib Sanginov assassinated in Dushanbe.

2001 June - Leaders of China, Russia and four Central Asian states launch the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and agree to fight ethnic and religious militancy while promoting trade and investment.

Fleeing Afghan conflict: Refugees in Tajikistan

2001 August - Renegade warlord and former opposition commander Rahmon Sanginov, regarded by the government as one of its most wanted criminals, is killed in a gun battle with security forces.

19,000 prisoners amnestied to mark 10th anniversary of independence.

2001 September - Culture Minister Abdurakhim Rakhimov is shot dead by an unidentified gunman, the third senior official to be assassinated in a year.

Tajikistan is quick to offer support to the US-led anti-terror coalition, set up after the September 11 attacks on the US.

2002 July - Tajikistan doubles the number of border guards along its 1,300-km frontier with Afghanistan to prevent al-Qaeda members from entering the country to escape US forces.

2003 February - Eleven Islamic militants sentenced to death and dozens to lengthy jail sentences for murder and kidnapping during and after the civil war of the 1990s.

2003 April - Russian President Vladimir Putin visits and announces plans to boost Russian military presence.

2003 June - Shamsiddin Shamsiddinov, deputy leader of the opposition Islamic Rebirth Party, arrested and charged with murder. Party leadership asserts that the arrest is politically motivated.

Mountain home: A family in the Pamirs

Referendum vote goes in favour of allowing President Rahmonov to run for a further two consecutive seven-year terms when his current one ends in 2006. The opposition describes the referendum as a travesty of democracy.

2003 July - Parliament approves a draft law abolishing the death penalty for women and reducing the number of crimes for which men can face punishment.

Supreme Court sentences Shamsiddin Shamsiddinov, deputy leader of opposition Islamic Rebirth Party, to 16 years in jail.

2004 July - Parliament approves moratorium on death penalty.

2004 October - Russia formally opens military base and takes back control over former Soviet space monitoring centre.

2004 December - Leader of opposition Democratic Party, Mahmadruzi Iskandarov, arrested in Moscow at request of Tajik prosecutor's office. Tajik authorities seek his extradition, alleging involvement in terrorism and arms offences as well as corruption. His supporters say the move is politically motivated.

2005 January - Car blows up near government building in Dushanbe, killing at least one person. Fire breaks out at Security Ministry on same day. Government later blames Islamic militants.

2005 February - Ruling party wins overwhelming victory in parliamentary elections. International observers say poll fails to meet acceptable standards.

Lake Pairon: Tajikistan has tourist potential

2005 April - Opposition leader Mahmadruzi Iskandarov released in Moscow after extradition request turned down but kidnapped and rearrested in Tajikistan.

2005 June - Russian border guards complete withdrawal, handing the task over to Tajik forces.

2005 October - Opposition leader Mahmadruzi Iskandarov sentenced in Dushanbe to 23 years in jail on terrorism and corruption charges

2006 January - 20 people killed when avalanche engulfs apartment block in mountainous region northeast of Dushanbe.

2006 May - Several killed when gunmen attack border post before crossing into Kyrgyzstan.

2006 August - Gaffor Mirzoyev, former top military commander, sentenced to life imprisonment after being convicted on charges of terrorism and plotting to overthrow the government. His supporters say the trial was politically motivated.

Said Abdullo Nuri, leader of the opposition Islamic Revival Party, dies.

2006 November - President Rakhmonov wins a third term in office, in an election which international observers say is neither free nor fair.