After the disintegration of the Russian Empire during World War I and the subsequent rise to power of the Bolsheviks, the treaty of Brest-Litovsk permitted the reoccupation of Western Armenia by Ottoman forces, which began to encroach on Eastern Armenian territory. The Armenian Revolutionary Federation coordinated an armed resistance to the Ottomans, which halted their advances at Sardarabad, Abaran and Karakilisa, thus securing the independence of Armenia. The Democratic Republic of Armenia was subsequently established by the ARF, which began a period of reconstruction in the country.