Status: 06/15/2022 1:51 p.m
Ten years ago, the Bundeswehr withdrew from operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Now the federal cabinet wants to send soldiers to the country again. The Bundestag still has to agree.
The Bundeswehr is to take part in a European military operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina again in the future. The federal cabinet has submitted a draft to parliament.
If the Bundestag agrees to the mission, 25 soldiers are to be transferred to the country in the Balkans in August. After that, up to 50 soldiers can be deployed in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The mandate is to apply until the end of June 2023. Around 2,000 soldiers from more than 20 countries are currently involved in the European mission.
Tensions in divided Bosnia and Herzegovina
The European operation, dubbed Eufor Althea, once followed NATO’s Stabilization Force mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Eufor Althea aims to ensure security in the country and support compliance with the 1995 Dayton Agreement.
Tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a successor state to the former Republic of Yugoslavia. In 1992 there was a referendum in which more than 60 percent of voters voted for independence. Then a war broke out that lasted until 1995. The intervention of the United Nations and NATO ended the conflict.
In November 1995, the warring parties finally gave their consent to the Dayton Peace Agreement, which came about with the participation of the European Union and the USA. The constitution of the country is laid down in this peace agreement.
Since then, Bosnia and Herzegovina has consisted of two autonomous parts: the Bosnian-Croatian Federation and the Serb Republic (Republika Srpska). A special status was granted to the border district around the town of Brčko. The parts of the country are connected by a common central government, which, however, has only limited powers.
Participation in the European mission was decided for the first time in 2004 by the Bundestag. At that time, too, the German soldiers were supposed to make a contribution to stabilizing the country, which was shaken by armed conflicts between ethnic and religious groups. They also advised the Bosnian armed forces. In 2012, the deployment abroad for the Bundeswehr ended.
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