· Legal decision
Federal Supreme Court ruling on the Kurdistan referendum, 2017
Iraq’s federal Supreme Court ruled the 2017 referendum unconstitutional and cancelled its results.
Global timeline
Dated events from published cases, in chronological order. Dates keep their real precision; a period filter includes any event whose date range overlaps it.
Events
64 events.
Events over time
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· Referendum or popular consultation
Bougainville referendum, 2019
Bougainvilleans chose between greater autonomy and independence; 176,928 of 181,067 ballot papers counted were for independence.
In: Bougainville
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· Conflict episode
Breakdown of the Western Sahara ceasefire, 2020
The Frente POLISARIO announced its withdrawal from the 1991 ceasefire and a return to armed struggle.
In: Western Sahara
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· Recognition
US recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, 2020
The United States recognised Moroccan sovereignty over the whole Territory and endorsed Morocco’s autonomy proposal as the only basis for a solution.
In: Western Sahara
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· Agreement
Joint Communique on the outcome of the Bougainville referendum, 2021
The PNG and Bougainville governments opened formal consultations on the referendum outcome and restated that the National Parliament takes the final decision.
In: Bougainville
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· Legal decision
Supreme Court ruling on a Scottish independence referendum bill, 2022
The UK Supreme Court held that the Scottish Parliament cannot legislate for an independence referendum without a change to the reserved matters.
In: Scotland
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· Legislation
Spanish amnesty law for the Catalan independence process, 2024
Spain amnestied acts linked to the 2014 and 2017 votes and the independence process; the Constitutional Court upheld most of the law in 2025 and the EU Court of Justice found it compatible with EU law in 2026.
In: Catalonia
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· Election
Kurdistan Parliament election, 2024
No party won a majority; the KDP and PUK had not formed a new government by mid-August 2026.
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· Election
Greenland parliamentary election, 2025
Demokraatit won the most votes; four of the five main parties sought independence at different speeds.
In: Greenland
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· International resolution
Security Council resolution 2797 on Western Sahara, 2025
The Security Council renewed MINURSO and backed negotiations on the basis of Morocco’s autonomy proposal, with a solution providing for self-determination.
In: Western Sahara
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· Negotiation
US pressure over Greenland and trilateral talks, 2026
US demands for control of Greenland led to tariff threats and to talks between Denmark, Greenland and the United States; both Nuuk and Copenhagen called sovereignty a red line.
In: Greenland
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· Negotiation
Western Sahara talks in Madrid and Washington, 2026
US-convened talks brought Morocco, the Frente POLISARIO, Algeria and Mauritania together, with the UN Personal Envoy co-chairing.
In: Western Sahara
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· Election
Scottish Parliament election, 2026
The SNP won 58 of 129 seats and, with the Scottish Greens, formed a pro-independence majority of 73 MSPs.
In: Scotland
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· Negotiation
Tabling of the Bougainville referendum result, 2026
Papua New Guinea’s parliament set a three-quarters threshold for ratification and received the referendum result, but had not voted by 28 August 2026.
In: Bougainville