January 16 -- Air assault of Operation Desert Storm begins. Ground attack begins February 24, Kuwait is liberated and war ends three days later. Worldwide audience of 1 billion people, largest in TV history for a non-sporting event, watches CNN's coverage.

April 3 -- U.N. resolution ends Persian Gulf War. CNN later wins Golden ACE and Peabody awards for coverage.

April 30 -- 125,000 die in Bangladesh cyclone

August -- Soviet hard-liners stage coup d'etat against Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev. Boris Yeltsin, president of Russian Republic, rallies national support against the rebels and helps to thwart coup. CNN is first with news and live pictures of the confrontation.

September 6 -- Soviet Union begins to break up when it recognizes Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia as independent states

December 25 -- Soviet Union is formally dissolved with the resignation of Gorbachev as president. CNN interviews Yeltsin and Gorbachev and broadcasts live coverage of the final transfer of power from the U.S.S.R. to Russia.