The United States withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. The ABM Treaty was signed in 1972 by the Soviet Union and the United States. It regulated the establishment of anti-ballistic missile shields against nuclear missiles. Critics bemoaned the treaty's termination for its potential negative effect on nuclear proliferation.

The leaders of South Korea and North Korea meet in an historic summit. The talks were initiated by then President of South Korea, Kim Dae-jung. For the implementation of his “Sunshine Policy”, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000.

Pioneer 10 becomes the first man-made object to leave the central solar system. The U.S. space probe crossed the orbit of Neptune, which at the time was classified as the furthest planet from the Sun.

The New York Times publishes the “Pentagon Papers”. The secret study of the United States' involvement in the Vietnam War revealed the government's lies concerning the scale of U.S. activities in Vietnam and neighboring countries. Daniel Ellsberg, an employee of the RAND Corporation, leaked the documents to the New York Times, and he was later tried but not convicted of espionage.

South Africa implements the Group Areas Act. The law assigned geographically separate residential and business areas for different racial groups, forcing non-whites from the most developed areas. It was a major pillar of the apartheid system of racial segregation and oppression.