NATO’s relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of newest members of the Partnership for Peace, joining in December 2006. Within this framework NATO and Bosnia and Herzegovina are developing cooperation with a focus on democratic, institutional and defence reforms, as well as practical cooperation in other areas. The country’s cooperation with NATO is set out in an Individual Partnership Programme (IPP). It is currently developing an Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP) to deepen cooperation with NATO. In April 2008, Bosnia and Herzegovina was invited to begin an Intensified Dialogue with NATO on its membership aspirations and related reforms.
The Allies played a key role in implementing the Dayton Peace Agreement on Bosnia and Herzegovina and in securing this peace through significant peacekeeping deployments over a nine year period from December 1995. In December 2004, this responsibility was handed over to the European Union. NATO retained a military headquarters in Sarajevo to assist the Bosnian authorities with defence reform, counter-terrorism, intelligence gathering and apprehending war-crimes suspects.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is now seeking to draw closer to Euro-Atlantic standards and institutions. As with many of NATO’s Partners, the extent of cooperation ultimately depends on the country’s willingness to continue its democratic, institutional and defence reform processes. The country is also expected to cooperate fully with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
How does cooperation work in practice?
Areas of cooperation, reform plans and political dialogue processes are detailed in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s IPP, which is jointly agreed with NATO for a two-year period. Key priorities include developing full democratic control of the armed forces, defence planning and budgeting and civil-emergency planning.
Beyond supporting reform, another key objective of NATO’s cooperation with Bosnia and Herzegovina is to develop the ability of the country’s forces to work together with forces from NATO countries and other Partners, especially in peacekeeping and crisis-management operations.
More…
How did relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina evolve?
In August 1995, NATO air strikes were instrumental in bringing an end to the bloody three year conflict in the country. In December 1995, the Alliance deployed its first-ever peacekeeping mission, the Implementation Force (IFOR), to implement the military aspects of the Dayton Peace Agreement. IFOR was replaced a year later by the Stabilization Force (SFOR), which helped maintain a secure environment to facilitate the country's reconstruction as well as supporting reform of the Bosnian armed forces. As the security situation gradually improved, the number of peacekeepers was progressively reduced from the 60 000 that were originally deployed to 7000 in 2004. SFOR’s mission ended in December 2004, when responsibility for maintaining security was handed over to the European Union. NATO continues to provide support to the EU operation in BiH (Operation Althea) within the framework of the Berlin Plus arrangements.
More…
