The concept of the Balkan Peninsula first emerged in the early 19th century to address the strategic region of south-eastern Europe. While its borders have historically been disputed, at the time this poster was printed by the International Union of Students it included what was then Yugoslavia (now six separate countries), Romania, Albania, and parts of Greece and Turkey. Starting in the 1960s, Romania, Yugoslavia, and other Comecon countries proposed that both the Soviet Union and the United States remove their military presence from the region, making it a nuclear-free zone. While both governments had influence in the Balkans, U.S. bases with nuclear weapons, most especially in Turkey and Greece, presented an extreme threat to the Soviet Union. Since it had the upper hand, the United States routinely rejected requests for demilitarization.