After a ten-year hiatus, the Bundeswehr has been active in Bosnia and Herzegovina again since 2022. As part of the EUFORE Althea mission, it is helping to ensure compliance with the Dayton Peace Agreement. The German government plans to continue the mission.
The vote on the continuation of the mandate will take place on June 23. That date will clarify whether the mission will be extended until June 30, 2024. Among other things, the Bundeswehr operates two buildings in the country for the liaison and observation teams. It also provides personnel to support the staff at the mission headquarters. The teams contribute to the overall situation through observation, patrols, contact with the population, local actors and institutions, and their own reporting.
The reason for the mission is that the tensions that led to the Bosnian war in the 1990s continue to reverberate today. The country is scarred by ethnic conflicts. In addition, Russia is trying to expand its influence in the Balkan region. Furthermore, the Bosnian Serb entity Republika Srpska – part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina – is striving for independence. Strong state institutions capable of dealing with this complex situation do not exist.
Approval for the mission remains consistently high, both at the United Nations and in Bosnia and Herzegovina. For this reason, the German government also believes it is right to continue Germany’s participation. “It will be some time before the mission will no longer be necessary,” said Parliamentary State Secretary Thomas Hitschler (SPD).
Jonas Brandstetter, editorial staff