At the start of the 21st century, there has been a renewed academic interest into small states and their status in international relations. This is illustrated by the establishment of the Centre for Small State Studies in 2003 at the University of Iceland, the development of the Small States Research Network based at the University of Birmingham and the creation of a specialist working group on small states through the British International Studies Association (BISA). This has been prompted by an increase in the numbers of small states in the international system caused by the dissolution of larger states like the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia but also because there is an appreciation that many issues and problems in International Relations affect small states in different ways than larger states. In the post-Cold War period, many problems and issues in world politics are associated with smaller states. The establishment or re-emergence of small states like the Baltic State
