The Newest Nation?

There are currently 196 countries in the world, but there could soon be one more. Bougainville, a collection of islands in the South Pacific, voted in December to become an independent nation. The islands--home to 250,000 people as well as $58 billion worth of gold and copper--have struggled against Papua New Guinea's rule since the 1970s. Violence broke out in the late 1980s, leading to a nine-year civil war that claimed the lives of an estimated 20,000 people. Now, nearly 98 percent of voters in the recent referendum supported seceding. Experts say negotiations between the two governments will take a while, but the almost unanimous...