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| Updated: February 2005 | NATO Publications |
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Briefing: Bringing peace and stability to the Balkans 1. Introduction
Almost exactly nine years since NATO deployed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in what was the Alliance’s first peacekeeping operation, that mission was brought to a successful conclusion. When the NATO-led Stabilisation Force (SFOR) left Bosnia and Herzegovina in December 2004, its departure reflected the improvement in the security situation in both Bosnia and Herzegovina and the wider region in recent years. It also heralded deeper security cooperation between the Alliance and the European Union, which deployed a new peacekeeping force and took responsibility for many important security tasks in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the years since NATO's intervention, the prospects of the Balkans and its peoples have changed almost beyond recognition. Whereas war or the threat of war hung over the entire region, today the likelihood of a return to large-scale hostilities is almost unthinkable. Whereas the Balkans appeared politically to be headed in a very different direction to the rest of the European continent, today Euro-Atlantic integration is a realistic goal for all countries and entities - in large part as a result of the security presence that the Alliance has provided. Today, both Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro - target of a sustained NATO air campaign only just over five years ago - are candidates for the Alliance's Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme. Albania, Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia(1) aspire to NATO membership and are already contributing personnel to NATO operations beyond the Euro-Atlantic area. And neighbouring countries - Bulgaria, Romania and Slovenia - have become NATO members, thereby extending Europe's zone of stability in and around the region. Indeed, even before the hand-over in Bosnia and Herzegovina it had been possible to reduce the number of NATO-led troops in the Balkans to around 25,000 - little more than a third of the number deployed in 1999 - some 7,000 of whom were in SFOR.
To be sure, challenges remain that should not be underestimated. Serbia and Montenegro's international rehabilitation may only become irreversible when it has met all the requirements for PfP membership, including surrendering the most notorious war crimes suspects on its territory, and is admitted into the programme. The future political status of Kosovo has not been resolved and a robust international security presence remains necessary. And stagnant economies undermine even the most determined international peace-building efforts. In recognition of ongoing threats to stability, NATO remains committed to building long-term stability throughout Southeastern Europe. Indeed, the successful termination of SFOR does not spell the end of NATO's engagement in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Rather, it is an important step in the evolution of the Alliance's security presence in the region. Even now after the European Union deployed its force, EUFOR, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, NATO has retained its own military headquarters in the country. Whereas the European Union is responsible for ensuring day-to-day security, NATO is focusing primarily on defence reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina, preparing the country for PfP membership and eventually for Alliance membership. The NATO Headquarters, which is headed by a one-star US general with a staff of around 150, is also working on counter-terrorism, apprehending war-crimes suspects and intelligence-gathering (see chapter 3). Cooperation between the European Union and NATO in Bosnia and Herzegovina is in accordance with a package of arrangements known as "Berlin Plus". The term is a reference to the fact that the 1996 meeting at which NATO foreign ministers agreed to create a European Security and Defence Identity and make Alliance assets available for this purpose took place in Berlin. In practice, the arrangements seek to avoid unnecessary duplication of capabilities between the two organisations and to ensure that they work together hand in glove. The strategic commander of the EU mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina is NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, who is also the most senior EU officer and is based at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers, Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium. The chain of command runs from an EU cell at SHAPE through another EU cell at Allied Joint Force Command Naples, which was responsible for SFOR in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as the Kosovo Force (KFOR), to ensure that the missions operate seamlessly together. Contingency plans exist for NATO to provide over-the-horizon forces if required. EUFOR derives its mandate from a new UN Security Council resolution and has an initial strength of 7,000, that is equal in size to SFOR. This compares with an initial NATO-led force, the Implementation Force or IFOR, of 60,000 more heavily armed and equipped troops that deployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina in December 1995. IFOR had a oneyear mandate to oversee implementation of the military aspects of the peace agreement: bringing about and maintaining an end to hostilities; separating the armed forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina's two entities, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska; transferring territory between the two entities according to the peace agreement; and moving the parties' forces and heavy weapons into approved storage sites. These goals were achieved by June 1996. (1)Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.
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