Romulan Neutral Zone The Romulan Neutral Zone was an area of neutral space between the United Federation of Planets and the Romulan Star Empire . The Neutral Zone was established after the end of the Earth - Romulan War in 2160 . Entry by either side into the Zone constituted an act of war . The Romulans incorporated a map of the Neutral Zone into the Romulan Senate chamber ' s floor . ( ; ) Location . During the Neutral Zone Incursion of 2266 , the location of the Romulan Neutral Zone was labeled on a map of Sector Z - 6 that was displayed on the bridge viewscreen of the . ( , " production art " ) In 2293 , the location of the Romulan Neutral Zone in the Milky Way Galaxy was labeled in a star chart that was in Captain James T . Kirk ' s quarters aboard the . ( " okudagram " ) In 2366 , the location of the Romulan Neutral Zone was labeled on a tactical intelligence analysis that was displayed on one of the viewscreens of the . ( " okudagram " ) In 2369 , the location of the Romulan Neutral Zone was depicted by a thin line on a Deep Space 9 traffic control database map that was displayed on one of the viewscreens of the " Enterprise " - D . ( " okudagram " ) History . After the Earth - Romulan War , at least eight Earth Outpost Station s were built on asteroid s throughout the Zone . In 2266 , four of these outpost s were destroyed by a . Commander was in command of Earth Outpost 4 until its destruction . ( ) Under the terms of the treaty , the Romulans had a legal right to seize and impound any Federation starship that entered the zone . ( ) In 2311 , the Neutral Zone was reinforced and redefined in the Treaty of Algeron . Deanna Troi recalled this fact when she discussed the " Pegasus " Incident with Commander Riker . ( ; ) In 2364 , the was ordered to investigate the Neutral Zone to solve a mystery concerning the disappearance of a string of Federation outposts . It was later established that the outposts were destroyed by the Borg due to a signature technique unique to their technology . A crew member aboard the ship , Worf , described it : " " The outpost was just not destroyed , it ' s as though " some great force " just scooped it off the face of the planet . " " Later that year , the " Enterprise " - D encountered a Borg cube that had obliterated several other populations in uncharted space in the same fashion . ( ) In 2366 , after receiving intelligence from a Romulan defector about a possible Romulan base at Nelvana III , outposts along the zone received warnings from Starfleet Command . Several independent vessels in nearby sectors received the same warning . ( ) In 2367 , according to a starship mission status chart seen on the bridge of the " Enterprise " - D , the and were assigned to patrol this zone . ( " display graphic " ) In 2369 , according to a starship mission status chart seen in the observation lounge of the " Enterprise " - D , the " Berlin " and the " Monitor " were assigned to patrol this zone . ( " production art " ) By this year , the Federation had installed subspace listening post s and gravitic sensor net s along their side of the zone . ( ) For that year , one of the missions of Starbase 12 was as a base for ships patrolling the zone . This mission was mentioned in the Sector Ipai Relay Log . ( ) In 2370 , FGMS " Gyt ' aerat " arrived to Deep Space 9 on stardate 47556 . 3 from the Neutral Zone . ( " production art " ) In 2373 , the was ordered to patrol the Neutral Zone during the second Borg assault on Earth , as Starfleet Command felt that Jean - Luc Picard ' s experience with the Borg would make him a risk during the battle to defend Earth . ( ) In late 2374 , before the Romulans joined the Dominion War , the bulk of their fleet was deployed along the Neutral Zone . ( ) The disappeared and was presumed destroyed by the Dominion near the Neutral Zone . It was believed that the Dominion ships had crossed the Cardassian - Romulan border to strike the " Cairo " from the Romulan side of the Zone , a pattern the Dominion employed frequently and which the Romulans ignored due to their nonaggression pact with the Dominion . ( ) In 2379 , Praetor Shinzon attempted to fool Picard into believing he wanted the Neutral Zone to be abolished . ( ) Holodeck simulation - Captain Riker . In 2367 , while exploring a cavern on Alpha Onias III , Commander William T . Riker was rendered unconscious by gas es . While unconscious , neural scanner s scanned Riker ' s brain . The scanners used elements of Riker ' s reality and constructed a holodeck simulation with those elements interspersed throughout , so that it felt real to him . What Riker wanted , the scanners made possible . In one of these simulations , on stardate 49472 , Captain Riker , the commanding officer of the , was ordered to patrol this zone and provide tactical support for Starbase 384 . In 2283 , this zone was mentioned in Riker ' s service record that was on display in his quarters on the " Enterprise " - D . ( " okudagram " ) Systems in the Romulan Neutral Zone . The following systems were located in the Romulan Neutral Zone : Systems near the Romulan Neutral Zone . Additionally , the following systems were located near the Romulan Neutral Zone : Background information . According to " " ( p . 56 ) and " " ( " Stellar Cartography " p . 35 ; " Federation Historical Highlights , 2161 - 2385 " ) , the Neutral Zone was located in the Beta Quadrant . In 2387 , Hobus , a star " just inside " the Neutral Zone , exploded and " triggered an intermittent shock through subspace " which destroyed the Romulan system . According to " Star Trek : Star Charts " ( p . 66 ) , the first outposts were the Earth Outposts . There were 23 of these outposts , which were established in 2160 . The first seven outposts were built in what had been the Romulan War Theater of Operations . Additional outposts were built over the centuries . There were four Tango Outposts in the Bolarus sector , six Sierra Outposts in the Kaleb sector , three Romeo Outposts in the Taugan sector , and six Quebec Outposts in the Hyralan sector .