Bosnia and Herzegovina: Issues for U.S. Policy

Publication Date: February 2005

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: International relations

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Abstract:

The 1995 Dayton Peace Accords, brokered primarily by the United States, ended the war in Bosnia, which had cost hundreds of thousands of lives and created over 2 million refugees and displaced persons. The Dayton Peace Accords also set up Bosnia's current political structure of two semi-autonomous, ethnically-based "entities" and a relatively weak central government. It resulted in the deployment of a NATO-led peacekeeping force, which was charged with providing a secure environment for the implementation of the peace agreement. In December 2004, a European Union force took over peacekeeping duties from NATO. A U.N.appointed High Representative, created by the Dayton Accords, oversees the civilian implementation efforts.

In the more than nine years since the accords, the United States and other countries have scored significant achievements in Bosnia, including sharply reduced inter-ethnic violence, restored freedom of movement, and the return of many refugees and displaced persons to their homes. The international community has also helped Bosnia hold largely free and fair elections and set up many of the institutions of a modern democratic state. However, these individual successes have not added up to the accomplishment of the overall goal of international efforts in Bosnia: the creation of a stable, united Bosnia, able to continue reforms on its own and integrate into Euro-Atlantic institutions. Almost all progress on reforms and on promoting greater unity in Bosnia continues to require direct or indirect intervention by representatives of the international community. Reform efforts continue to be met by obstructionism or passivity by the nationalist parties that control Bosnian governments at all levels. Some observers also assert that the cumbersome governing institutions set up by the Dayton Peace Accords are unworkable.

Supporters of international activism in Bosnia say that the only way to move forward is to continue to impose reforms when necessary, and that when these reforms reach a critical mass, they will become self-sustaining. According to critics of current international policy on Bosnia, international interventionism has led to dependency and irresponsibility among local elites. This problem is all the more serious as the international commitment to Bosnia in troops and funding has decreased in recent years.

Another important issue is whether Bosnia is still important to U.S. interests. Some say that pressing U.S. commitments in other countries and regions argue for transferring full responsibility for Bosnia to European countries. Others believe that the United States still has a stake in Bosnia's stability, as part of building a Europe "whole and free," the overarching U.S. objective in the region. They say continued U.S. involvement in Bosnia may be needed to arrest indicted war criminals, as well as to make sure that Bosnia is not used as a haven for organized crime or terrorists. The 109th Congress will likely be involved in such issues as appropriating foreign aid for Bosnia and examining Bosnia's compliance with its obligations to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. This report will be updated as events warrant.