2020S: Decade (2020–2029)

It is distinct from the decade known as the 203th decade which will begin on January 1, 2021. and end on December 31, 2030.

From left, clockwise: Colourised transmission electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 virions with visible coronae, the virus that causes COVID-19, which in 2020 became a pandemic that has so far dominated the decade; A Russian BMP-3 near Mariupol destroyed during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, part of the greater Russo-Ukrainian War; Smartphones saw foldable technology being incorporated in the early 2020s, as well as 5G cellular networks; In addition to many private and public spaceflight advancements, the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Taliban fighters in Kabul on a captured Humvee following the 2021 fall of Kabul at the end of the War in Afghanistan.

2020

• In 2020, the United Kingdom left the European Union. This event was called Brexit.
• Starting in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has been spreading around the world. As of April 2022, over 500 million people have been infected, and more than 6 million people have died. Government responses to the pandemic caused many disputes. Business slowed down during the pandemic, which led to a recession.
• May 25 – George Floyd, an African-American man, was killed by a police officer in Minnesota. Over the next few months, there were many protests across the United States against police violence and racism.
• June 30 - China's National People's Congress enacts the Hong Kong national security law. This law gave the National People's Congress much more power over Hong Kong. It allowed China to reduce civil liberties in Hong Kong.
• July 9 - Protests begin in Bulgaria against the government of Boyko Borisov.
• September 27 - November 10 – The 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war was fought between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. Azerbaijan won the war and gained land.
• November 3 – Joe Biden was elected as 46th President of the United States, defeating incumbent Donald Trump.
• November – The Tigray War, a civil war, began in Ethiopia between the Tigray Region and the government of Ethiopia.

2021

• During 2021, COVID-19 vaccines were given to large numbers of people around the world. By the end of the year, over 4 billion people had received at least one vaccine dose.
• January 6 – The United States Capitol is attacked and stormed by supporters of Donald Trump.
• January 20 – Joe Biden was sworn in as 46th President of the United States.
• The 2020 Summer Olympics happened in 2021 instead. They were moved a year later because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• July 7 – President of Haiti Jovenel Moïse is assassinated at his home, aged 53.
• August 31 – The War in Afghanistan ended as the United States military left Afghanistan and the Taliban took over the country.

2022

• February 24 – Russia launched an invasion on Ukraine. The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine is the largest war fought in Europe since World War II. In response, other countries brought economic sanctions, or penalties, against the Russian government.
• July 8 – Former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe is assassinated at aged 67.
• September 8 – Elizabeth II died at the age of 96. Which led to the succession of her son King Charles III
• November 15 – The world population reached 8 billion (8,000,000,000) people, according to the United Nations.
• November 30 – OpenAI released ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence chatbot able to answer questions and write essays.

• In 2004, then President of the United States George W. Bush said that people would try to fly to Mars some time in this decade.
• In 2023, India became the country with the highest population, passing China.
• In 2027, the autopsy (study of a dead body to find out how that person died) of Elvis Presley will be published.