United Nations Protection Force
Encyclopedia
The United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR), was the first United Nations
peacekeeping
force in Croatia
and in Bosnia and Herzegovina
during the Yugoslav wars
. It existed between the beginning of UN involvement in February 1992, and its restructuring into other forces (United Nations Preventive Deployment Force - UNPREDEP
) in March 1995. In French, its name was FORPRONU (Force de Protection des Nations Unies).
, Bangladesh
, Belgium
, Brazil
, Canada
, Colombia
, Czech Republic
, Denmark
, Egypt
, Estonia
, Finland
, France
, Germany
, Ghana
, India
, Indonesia
, Ireland
, Italy
, Jordan
, Kenya
, Lithuania
, Malaysia, Nepal
, Netherlands
, New Zealand
, Nigeria
, Norway
, Pakistan
, Poland
, Portugal
, the Russian Federation, Slovak Republic
, Spain
, Sweden
, Switzerland
, Tunisia
, Turkey
, Ukraine
, the United Kingdom
and the United States
.
The commanders of the UNPROFOR were:
Prominent officers :
on 21 February 1992 during the Croatian War of Independence
. The initial mandate of the UNPROFOR was to ensure conditions for peace talks, and security in three demilitarized "safe-haven" enclaves designated as United Nations Protected Areas (UNPAs) located in various regions of what was at the time the internationally recognized Republic of Croatia but were controlled by the self-styled Republic of Serbian Krajina
.
In 1992, the mandate was extended to so-called "pink zones" controlling access to the UNPAs (UNSC Resolution 762
), some border control and monitoring of civilian access to the Pink Zones (UNSC Resolution 769
), and control of the demilitarisation of the Prevlaka
peninsula near Dubrovnik
(UNSC Resolution 779
).
On 31 March 1995, UNPROFOR was restructured into three coordinated peace operations. On 20 December 1995 the forces of the UNPROFOR were reflagged under the NATO led Implementation Force (IFOR
) whose task was to implement the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (GFAP — otherwise known as the Dayton Accords or Dayton Agreement
).
was of UNPROFOR Civil Affairs at the beginning of the mission in February 1992. By the end of its first mandate in March 1993, UNPROFOR had had some success in restoring peace in Croatia
, notably obtaining the removal of the Yugoslav People's Army
(JNA) in May 1992. However, civil unrest was such that terror, discrimination and "ethnic cleansing
" were still present. Local Serb forces managed to complete their cleansing of the UNPA areas, started in 1991, that left only 279 Croats there out of a pre-war population of 102,000.
The situation was problematic mostly because of the non-cooperation of local Serb authorities, and because of later major Croat military offensives. Additionally, the situation for which the UNPROFOR had been designed had significantly changed. The Croat part now refused to negotiate its sovereignty on the UNPAs and Pink Zones, which the Serb part would not accept. Apparition of the so-called "Republic of Serbian Krajina
" further complicated the situation.
The Opening of the Sarajevo Airport was conducted by the Canadian Operational Force, which moved within the Theater of Operations from Croatia (Surac) to the combat zone of Sarajevo
. The Canadian Force included the French-speaking Royal 22e Régiment
, with the attachment of N Company of the English-speaking 3rd Battalion
, The Royal Canadian Regiment
. The Canadian Contingent was deployed by train from Canadian Forces Base Baden-Soellingen and CFB Lahr
, Germany.
In spite of hostile actions, Sarajevo
international airport had successfully remained open. In the period from 3 July 1992 to 31 January 1993, the humanitarian airlift organised by UNHCR under UNPROFOR protection brought in 2,476 aircraft carrying 27,460 tons of food, medicines and other relief goods.
Distribution of humanitarian aid was disrupted due to non-cooperation and even hostile actions (mines, small arms fire, RPG) of the parties in the field, especially from the Bosnian Serb forces. Nonetheless, from November 1992 to January 1993, a total of some 34,600 tons of relief supplies had been delivered to an estimated 800,000 beneficiaries in 110 locations throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina.
bridge on 18 July - Croatia was cut in half while the bridge was in Serb hands. The UNPROFOR mandated to monitor the withdrawal of Croatian forces from the area had been able to deploy, due to the refusal of access by Croat authorities. The Serbs shelled the bridge which was partially destroyed on 2 August. On 12 August, negotiations for a cease-fire began in Geneva, but were unsuccessful. Eventually, Croat forces retreated to their positions of before the incursion.
In mid-March, unidentified airplanes dropped bombs onto villages in the vicinity of Srebrenica violating the "No-Flight zones" for the first time. The Bosnian Serbs were blamed for the bombing but denied it. On 31 March, a resolution was voted authorising the nations contributing to the UNPROFOR to take "all necessary measures" to prevent military flights from the belligerents in the no-flight zones ("Operation Deny Flight
"). French, Dutch and American airplanes were deployed to enforce the resolution. In total, until 1 December 1994, 3317 violations were observed. On 28 February 1994, four military aircraft were shot down by NATO fighters over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
attempted to address this issue by declaring Srebrenica a "Safe Area". Resolution 836
authorized UNPROFOR "acting in self-defense, to take the necessary measures, including the use of force, in reply to bombardments against the safe areas by any of the parties or to armed incursion into them or in the event of any deliberate obstruction in or around those areas the freedom of movement of UNPROFOR or of protected humanitarian convoys" . To implement the deterrence, around 7600 reinforcements were sent and air support was organised in coordination with NATO.
Unfortunately, the UN force were so poorly equipped and restrictively mandated that they could not even deter Bosnian forces within the "Safe Areas" themselves. Bosnian forces increasingly used the Safe Areas as bases to launch attacks against the Serbs, and explains the obstruction by General Mladić against protective measures for the "Safe Areas".
, on 16 April 1993, is an example of the savagery of the terror http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/603420.stm http://www.un.org/icty/transe14/971110ed.htm. Tihomir Blaškić
was the officer of the Croat HVO army formation who was tried and convicted at the ICTY over his responsibility for this massacre. Blaškić served almost nine years in prison before the appeals panel acquitted him of most of the charges in July 2004, as the defence proved that he did not command all the HVO units in the area or any paramilitary units http://www.un.org/icty/glance/blaskic.htm.
On 24 September, the Security Council was informed by the Croatian Government that if the mandate of UNPROFOR was not amended to promote energetic implementation of the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, Croatia would be forced to request UNPROFOR to leave the country not later than 30 November 1993. Subsequent redefinition of the mandate occurred.
At the end of the year, the warring parties attempted to come to a cease-fire. The truce was implemented between Croat and Serb forces, but fighting went on in Bosnia between Bosniaks and Croats, and the humanitarian situations continued to deteriorate. Notably, Sarajevo continued to be bombarded by Bosnian Serb forces. It was also reported that units of the regular Croat army were supporting Bosnian Croat forces with heavy equipment and men, removing their insignias. This led to further protests from the UN. Use of force began to be discussed at a NATO summit held in Brussels on 10 and 11 January 1994. The Bosnian Serbs, following talks with high-ranking officials of the Russian Federation in Moscow, agreed to open the Tuzla
airport for humanitarian purposes. At the same time, the relieving of UN troops in Srebrenica was allowed and the Canadian contingent was replaced by a Dutch contingent.
The situation in Sarajevo, however, remained extremely tense, with Bosnian Serb sniper fire deliberately aimed at civilians, and artillery and heavy mortar fire aimed at population areas. This strongly shaped Western public opinion, as a number of journalists were operating in Sarajevo, and murdered civilians were seen in the evening news on a regular basis. On 4 February 1994, a mortar shell fired at a suburb of Sarajevo killed 10 people and wounded 18. The next day, February 5, 1994, a mortar exploded in Sarajevo’s Markale market, leaving 68 dead and 200 injured in what was so far the bloodiest incident in Sarajevo in the 22 months of fighting. Exasperation at these provocations grew to the point where an ultimatum was sent, requiring the removal or surrender to the UNPROFOR of all heavy guns 20 km from Sarajevo (Bosnian and Bosnian Serb, with an exception for Pale
) within ten days. The ultimatum was satisfied on 17 February, with the heavy weapons that were not removed being regrouped in seven UNPROFOR-controlled spots.
On 23 February 1994, the cease-fire was brokered between Croat and Bosnian forces - the Washington Agreement - which ended their one-year long war and united the sides as the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. UNPROFOR's role in this was to monitor the cease-fire and in addition even helped to rebuild local infrastructure and staff checkpoints within the federation area.
airport, for UNPROFOR and humanitarian use only, was published.
On 29 March 1994, in Zagreb, representatives of the Government of Croatia and the local Serb authorities in UNPAs concluded a cease-fire agreement aiming to achieve a lasting cessation of hostilities.
Concurrently, the mandate of the UNPROFOR was extended for another six months, and reinforcements were sent, amounting to 10,000 troops and a few hundred policemen and observers.
During 1994, UNPROFOR troops in Bosnia came under increased military attacks, resulting in several battle engagements (Operation Bøllebank
, Operation Amanda
), with Bosnian Serb forces.
, heavily shelling the town and surrounding villages. Protests and exhortations from the UN Security Council turned out to be ineffective, and on 10 and 11 April 1994, NATO launched air strikes against Bosnian Serb positions. In retaliation, Bosnian Serb forces captured many UN personnel, using them as human shields at sites expected to be bombed. The bombings turned out to be much less effective than the recent Gulf War
, which had conditioned the public's understanding of air strikes. In spite of the demonstration of power of the NATO, and protests of good faith from the Serbs, the shelling continued. In a similar situation to what had happened in Sarajevo, an ultimatum was issued, and by the 24th, most of the Serb troops had complied. These incidents led to another reflection about the status of the Safe Areas.
, severed all commercial and monetary links to the Bosnian Serb entity. Notably, this cut the flow of fuel to the Bosnian Serbs, a hard strategic blow.
Due to the extreme position taken by the Bosnian Serb government, the Yugoslav Federation (Serbia and Montenegro) itself had to take a strong stance against the Bosnian Serb entity. This led to the quasi-complete diplomatic isolation of the Bosnian Serb entity.
" became famous and infamous http://www.friends-partners.org/bosnia/sniper.html. Deliberate attacks against UNPROFOR personnel or aircraft became frequent.
In October, the Bosnian Muslim forces, trapped in the Bihać pocket, attacked the Bosnian Serb forces in an attempt to end the siege of the city. The attack and the ensuing counter-attack by the Bosnian Serbs induced terror in the local population and another massive exodus of refugees. In deliberate contradiction with the "Safe Area" status of Bihać and the "No-flight" zones, Bosnian Serb airplanes made repeated attacks in the Bihać area, using cluster bombs and napalm.
In reaction to this threat, on 21 November, NATO airplanes destroyed the Udbina airstrip, located in the UNPA Sector South in Croatia. The following days, NATO airplanes again had to intervene, against Bosnian Serb anti-air missiles sites which had opened fire upon British jets, and against artillery sites which shelled Bihać. Instead of lowering their profile, the Bosnian Serbs retaliated by taking UN personnel hostage and restraining humanitarian aid transit.
On the diplomatic scene, all efforts to come to a cease-fire turned out to be to no avail, here again mostly because of Bosnian Serb obstruction—Dr. Karadžić
declined the invitation of the UN Secretary-General.
On the 27 May 1995, General Mladić
along with General Nuhić launched an assault against the UN observation point of the Vrbanja bridge. At 5 in the morning, the French captain commanding the position lost contact with the 12 men and went to investigate. A Serb dressed with a blue helmet and French body armour and uniform attempted to take him hostage, but was deterred by the escort, and the officer managed to escape. In the following hours, after intense shelling by ERC 90 Sagaie
armoured vehicles, the French stormed the post, killing four Serbs and capturing four others. Two French soldiers were killed.
At 12 o'clock, the Bosnian Serb radio broadcast that General Mladić had ordered to
On the 30 May, Ratko Mladić phoned Rupert Smith
and agreed not to put hostage Blue Helmets in chains, but to merely "bring" them on strategic sites. He also demanded "excuses" for the death of the four Serbian soldiers killed by the French at Vrbanja bridge, threatening to "be unable to guarantee the safety" of the UN forces in Goražde
.
battalion in place, and the city was overrun. When the dual key practices effectively prevented any serious air support from materialising all the Dutch could do was evacuate the women and children. The Serbs held the Muslim men and massacred thousands of them. The safe area of Zepa also fell to Bosnian Serbs on 25 July The events in Srebrenica
led to the Peacekeeping Best Practices Unit (PBPU) report
NATO initiated "Operation Deliberate Force" on August 30, 1995 in response to further provocations by Serb forces. At this point, UNPROFOR had become “militarily engaged” with NATO against the Bosnian Serb Army. NATO and UNPROFOR were increasingly difficult to separate by fall of 1995 in terms of both policy and actions taken on the ground.
In retaliation for the NATO bombings, the Serbs proceeded to retrieve their confiscated heavy weapons from the UN-controlled concentration points by force. The peace-keepers, massively out-numbered, had to surrender after brief symbolic fights. In several instances, Blue Helmets were surrounded in weapon storage areas by massively superior Serbian forces. General Hervé Gobillard, commanding officer for UN troops in Sarajevo, stated that the peacekeepers were "merely limited in their movements, yet [had] arms, ammunition food for many days and strict orders to defend their positions", but in the light of the hostage-takings, concerns were raised and the UN-led bombing stopped. Also, Serbian retaliations against civilians because of the bombings caused 70 dead and 150 wounded in Tuzla
, and 5 dead in Goražde
.
Later one winter’s day British UN troops carrying side arms were confronted by General Mladić skiing down the piste at Sarajevo’s former Olympic skiing resort but made no move for their guns; skiing behind Mladić were four bodyguards. Despite his Hague warrant, they decided to carry on skiing. Later NATO had a rethink, sending commandos to arrest war crimes suspects, but Mladić simply went underground. No amount of NATO action or UN demands, or even a $5 million bounty announced by Washington, could bring him in.
in August 1995 altered the political geography of BiH. Collectively these ultimately led to the Dayton Agreement
and the deployment of the NATO led IFOR on 20 December 1995 to ensure the adherence of the Former Warring Factions (FWF) to the Military Annexes of The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Some of UNPROFOR troops were folded into the new IFOR forces, but for all intents and purposes, UNPROFOR no longer operated in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
A great deal of resentment and frustration arose in the participating countries, especially in those whose troops had been in contact with the most outrageous situations; for instance (and not exclusively)
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
peacekeeping
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
force in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
and in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
during the Yugoslav wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
. It existed between the beginning of UN involvement in February 1992, and its restructuring into other forces (United Nations Preventive Deployment Force - UNPREDEP
UNPREDEP
The United Nations Preventive Deployment Force was established on 31 March 1995 in Security Council Resolution 983 to replace the United Nations Protection Force in the Republic of Macedonia...
) in March 1995. In French, its name was FORPRONU (Force de Protection des Nations Unies).
Personnel
The UNPROFOR was composed of nearly 39,000 personnel, 320 of whom were killed on duty. It was composed of troops from ArgentinaArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, Italy
Italian Army
The Italian Army is the ground defence force of the Italian Armed Forces. It is all-volunteer force of active-duty personnel, numbering 108,355 in 2010. Its best-known combat vehicles are the Dardo infantry fighting vehicle, the Centauro tank destroyer and the Ariete tank, and among its aircraft...
, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Malaysia, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, the Russian Federation, Slovak Republic
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The commanders of the UNPROFOR were:
- Lieutenant-General Satish NambiarSatish NambiarLieutenant General Chenicheri Satish Nambiar is an Indian general who achieved international recognition as the first Force Commander and Head of Mission of UNPROFOR, the United Nations Protection Force in the former Yugoslavia, between March 1992 and March 1993...
(India), from March 1992 to March 1993 - Lieutenant-General Lars-Eric Wahlgren (Sweden), from March 1993 to June 1993
- General Jean Cot (France), from June 1993 to March 1994
- General Bertrand de Sauville de La Presle (France), from March 1994 to March 1995
- General Bernard Janvier (France), from March 1995 to January 1996
Prominent officers :
- Major-General Lewis MacKenzieLewis MacKenzieMajor-General Lewis Wharton MacKenzie, UE, CM, CMM, MSC, O.Ont, CD is a retired Canadian general, author and media commentator. MacKenzie is most famous for establishing and commanding Sector Sarajevo as part of the United Nations Protection Force UNPROFOR in Yugoslavia in 1992...
(Canada) Sector Sarajevo 1992 - General Philippe MorillonPhilippe MorillonPhilippe Morillon is a former French general and was a Member of the European Parliament until 2009. He was elected on the Union for French Democracy ticket with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe group...
(France) from October 1992 to July 1993 - Lieutenant-General Francis Briquemont (Belgium) ? to 17 January 1994
- Lieutenant-General Sir Michael RoseHugh Michael RoseGeneral Sir Hugh Michael Rose KCB, CBE, DSO, QGM , often known as Mike Rose, is a retired British Army General. As well as commanding 22 Special Air Service Regiment, he was Commander UNPROFOR Bosnia in 1994 during the Yugoslav Wars.-Early life:The stepson of British author John Masters, Rose was...
(Great Britain) from 17 January 1994 to 25 February 1995 - Lieutenant-General Rupert SmithRupert SmithGeneral Sir Rupert Smith KCB, DSO & Bar, OBE, QGM was an officer in the British Army until his retirement in 2002. He was educated at the Haileybury and Imperial Service College and later at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.- Military career :...
(Great Britain) from 25 February 1995
Croatia
UNPROFOR was created by UN Security Council Resolution 743United Nations Security Council Resolution 743
United Nations Security Council Resolution 743, adopted unanimously on February 21, 1992, after reaffirming resolutions 713 , 721 , 724 , 727 and 740 , and considering that the situation in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia constitutes a threat to international peace and stability, the...
on 21 February 1992 during the Croatian War of Independence
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
. The initial mandate of the UNPROFOR was to ensure conditions for peace talks, and security in three demilitarized "safe-haven" enclaves designated as United Nations Protected Areas (UNPAs) located in various regions of what was at the time the internationally recognized Republic of Croatia but were controlled by the self-styled Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
.
In 1992, the mandate was extended to so-called "pink zones" controlling access to the UNPAs (UNSC Resolution 762
United Nations Security Council Resolution 762
United Nations Security Council Resolution 762, adopted unanimously on June 30, 1992, after reaffirming resolutions 713 , 721 , 724 , 727 , 740 743 , 749 , 752 , 757 , 758 , 760 and 761 , the Council urged all parties to honour their commitments to the United Nations plan in former Yugoslavia and...
), some border control and monitoring of civilian access to the Pink Zones (UNSC Resolution 769
United Nations Security Council Resolution 769
United Nations Security Council Resolution 769, adopted unanimously on August 7, 1992, after reaffirming Resolution 743 and all subsequent resolutions relating to the United Nations Protection Force , the Council authorised enlargements in the strength and mandate of UNPROFOR to "enable the Force...
), and control of the demilitarisation of the Prevlaka
Prevlaka
Prevlaka is a small peninsula in southern Croatia, at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor in the eastern Adriatic. The word prevlaka means portage. The cape Oštro, located at the tip of the peninsula, is the southernmost point of mainland in Croatia....
peninsula near Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
(UNSC Resolution 779
United Nations Security Council Resolution 779
United Nations Security Council Resolution 779, adopted unanimously on October 6, 1992, after reaffirming Resolution 743 and subsequent resolutions and noting a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali submitted pursuant to resolutions 743 and 762 , the Council authorised the United...
).
Bosnia and Herzegovina
In contrast to that of Croatia, the UNPROFOR mandate for Bosnia and Herzegovina was not to monitor a preexisting cease-fire, but to keep the population alive while the war ended. The mandate can essentially be divided into four phases, but it is important to note that the old responsibilities continued even as new tasks were added.- Phase 1: Aid to SarajevoSarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
- Beginning on 5 June 1992, UNPROFOR was responsible for the protection of SarajevoSarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
airportSarajevo International AirportSarajevo International Airport , also known as Butmir Airport, is the main international airport in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located southwest of the railway station in the capital city of Sarajevo in the suburb of Butmir....
as mandated by Resolution 758United Nations Security Council Resolution 758United Nations Security Council Resolution 758, adopted unanimously on June 8, 1992, after reaffirming resolutions 713 , 721 , 724 , 727 , 740 743 , 749 , 752 and 757 , the Council, in accordance with a report by the Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, decided to enlarge the mandate and...
for humanitarian purposes. UNPROFOR would run a security corridor for aid convoys between the airport and the city.
- Phase 2: Escort of Humanitarian Aid- On 14 September 1992, UNPROFOR was given a mandate by the United Nations Security CouncilUnited Nations Security CouncilThe United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
to protect humanitarian relief convoys as requested by the United Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesUnited Nations High Commissioner for RefugeesThe Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , also known as The UN Refugee Agency is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to...
(UNHCR) and provide ground transportation for difficult routes.
- Phase 3: The Protection of Safe Areas- The next expansion of the mandate was on 16 April 1993 with United Nations Security Council Resolution 819United Nations Security Council Resolution 819United Nations Security Council Resolution 819, adopted unanimously on April 16, 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 713 and all subsequent resolutions, the Council expressed concern at the actions of Bosnian Serb paramilitary units in towns and villages in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina,...
declaring the town of SrebrenicaSrebrenicaSrebrenica is a town and municipality in the east of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska. Srebrenica is a small mountain town, its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War, the town was the site of the July 1995 massacre,...
a "safe area" free "from armed attack or any other hostile act." In May 1993, BihaćBihacBihać is a city and municipality on the river Una in the north-western part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosanska Krajina region. Bihać is located in the Una-Sana Canton in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.-History:...
, Sarajevo, GoraždeGoraždeGoražde , is a city and municipality in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Drina river. It is located between Foča, Sokolac and Višegrad, and is administratively part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the center of the Bosnian Podrinje Canton.-Location:Goražde is situated on the...
, ŽepaŽepaŽepa is a town in the east of Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina in the municipality of Rogatica. Žepa is located northeast of Rogatica itself, southwest of Srebrenica and northwest of Višegrad...
and TuzlaTuzlaTuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
were also added as "safe areas".
- Phase 4: Monitoring the Muslim-Croat Federation and Weapons Exclusion Zones- Eventually, UNPROFOR monitored a US-brokered cease-fires in Bosnia in February 1994, creating the Muslim-Croat Federation. UNPROFOR was responsible for monitoring the zones of separation and weapons control points. In addition, the UNSC increased UNPROFOR's authorized strength to monitor weapons exclusion zones, but never actually altered the operation's mandate.
On 31 March 1995, UNPROFOR was restructured into three coordinated peace operations. On 20 December 1995 the forces of the UNPROFOR were reflagged under the NATO led Implementation Force (IFOR
IFOR
The Implementation Force was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force in Bosnia and Herzegovina under a one-year mandate from 20 December 1995 to 20 December 1996 under the codename Operation Joint Endeavour. Its task was to implement the military Annexes of The General Framework Agreement for...
) whose task was to implement the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (GFAP — otherwise known as the Dayton Accords or Dayton Agreement
Dayton Agreement
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton-Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio in November 1995, and formally signed in Paris on...
).
February 1992 – March 1993
Cedric ThornberryCedric Thornberry
Cedric Thornberry is an international lawyer and former Assistant-Secretary-General of the United Nations, for which he worked for 17 years. He spent most of his United Nations service in international peace keeping in Cyprus, the Middle East, ex-Yugoslavia and Somalia.-Background:Cedric Thornberry...
was of UNPROFOR Civil Affairs at the beginning of the mission in February 1992. By the end of its first mandate in March 1993, UNPROFOR had had some success in restoring peace in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, notably obtaining the removal of the Yugoslav People's Army
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army , also referred to as the Yugoslav National Army , was the military of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.-Origins:The origins of the JNA can...
(JNA) in May 1992. However, civil unrest was such that terror, discrimination and "ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
" were still present. Local Serb forces managed to complete their cleansing of the UNPA areas, started in 1991, that left only 279 Croats there out of a pre-war population of 102,000.
The situation was problematic mostly because of the non-cooperation of local Serb authorities, and because of later major Croat military offensives. Additionally, the situation for which the UNPROFOR had been designed had significantly changed. The Croat part now refused to negotiate its sovereignty on the UNPAs and Pink Zones, which the Serb part would not accept. Apparition of the so-called "Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
" further complicated the situation.
The Opening of the Sarajevo Airport was conducted by the Canadian Operational Force, which moved within the Theater of Operations from Croatia (Surac) to the combat zone of Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
. The Canadian Force included the French-speaking Royal 22e Régiment
Royal 22e Régiment
The Royal 22nd Regiment is an infantry regiment and the most famous francophone organization of the Canadian Forces. The regiment comprises three Regular Force battalions, two Primary Reserve battalions, and a band, making it the largest regiment in the Canadian Army...
, with the attachment of N Company of the English-speaking 3rd Battalion
3 Royal Canadian Regiment
3rd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment is a regular force light infantry battalion of the Canadian Forces. As of 2011, 3 RCR was designated Canada's first airmobile battalion...
, The Royal Canadian Regiment
The Royal Canadian Regiment
The Royal Canadian Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Canadian Forces. The regiment consists of four battalions, three in the Regular Force and one in the Primary Reserve...
. The Canadian Contingent was deployed by train from Canadian Forces Base Baden-Soellingen and CFB Lahr
Canadian Forces Base Lahr
Canadian Forces Base Lahr was a military owned and operated commercial airport located in Lahr, Germany. It was operated primarily as an air force base, and later as an army base, beginning in the late 1960s. The military base was closed in 1994 and converted to civilian use...
, Germany.
In spite of hostile actions, Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
international airport had successfully remained open. In the period from 3 July 1992 to 31 January 1993, the humanitarian airlift organised by UNHCR under UNPROFOR protection brought in 2,476 aircraft carrying 27,460 tons of food, medicines and other relief goods.
Distribution of humanitarian aid was disrupted due to non-cooperation and even hostile actions (mines, small arms fire, RPG) of the parties in the field, especially from the Bosnian Serb forces. Nonetheless, from November 1992 to January 1993, a total of some 34,600 tons of relief supplies had been delivered to an estimated 800,000 beneficiaries in 110 locations throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Croat incursions
On the 6 July 1993, new tensions arose following the Croatian government's decision to re-open the strategic MaslenicaMaslenica
Maslenica is a port and village in Zadar County, Dalmatia, Croatia.Its geographical coordinates are 44°13'N, 15°32'E. It is situated in Novigrad Sea, the gulf of Novigrad. Waters are quite clear due to the Zrmanja river which flows into this gulf.- History :...
bridge on 18 July - Croatia was cut in half while the bridge was in Serb hands. The UNPROFOR mandated to monitor the withdrawal of Croatian forces from the area had been able to deploy, due to the refusal of access by Croat authorities. The Serbs shelled the bridge which was partially destroyed on 2 August. On 12 August, negotiations for a cease-fire began in Geneva, but were unsuccessful. Eventually, Croat forces retreated to their positions of before the incursion.
Operation "Deny Flight"
Operation Deny Flight
Operation Deny Flight was a North Atlantic Treaty Organization operation that began on April 12, 1993 as the enforcement of a United Nations no-fly zone over Bosnia and Herzegovina...
"). French, Dutch and American airplanes were deployed to enforce the resolution. In total, until 1 December 1994, 3317 violations were observed. On 28 February 1994, four military aircraft were shot down by NATO fighters over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Safe areas
From March 1993, Serb para-military units killed a great number of civilians, destroyed habitations, prevented the UNHCR from delivering humanitarian aid, and forced thousands of Bosniak refugees to flee to the town of Srebrenica. 30 or 40 persons were dying daily from military action, starvation, exposure to cold or lack of medical treatment. Resolution 819United Nations Security Council Resolution 819
United Nations Security Council Resolution 819, adopted unanimously on April 16, 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 713 and all subsequent resolutions, the Council expressed concern at the actions of Bosnian Serb paramilitary units in towns and villages in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina,...
attempted to address this issue by declaring Srebrenica a "Safe Area". Resolution 836
United Nations Security Council Resolution 836
United Nations Security Council Resolution 836, adopted on June 4, 1993, after reaffirming Resolution 713 and all subsequent resolutions on the situation in the former Yugoslavia, the Council expressed its alarm at the continuing situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and decided to expand the...
authorized UNPROFOR "acting in self-defense, to take the necessary measures, including the use of force, in reply to bombardments against the safe areas by any of the parties or to armed incursion into them or in the event of any deliberate obstruction in or around those areas the freedom of movement of UNPROFOR or of protected humanitarian convoys" . To implement the deterrence, around 7600 reinforcements were sent and air support was organised in coordination with NATO.
Unfortunately, the UN force were so poorly equipped and restrictively mandated that they could not even deter Bosnian forces within the "Safe Areas" themselves. Bosnian forces increasingly used the Safe Areas as bases to launch attacks against the Serbs, and explains the obstruction by General Mladić against protective measures for the "Safe Areas".
War in Bosnia
In May 1993, intense fighting broke out in Central Bosnia between Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats. Croat para-military forces,committed exactions against Serbs and Bosniaks. The massacre in the village of AhmićiAhmici
Ahmići is a village in central Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the municipality of Vitez in the Lašva river valley.In April 1993 during Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing, the Croatian Defence Council forces indiscriminately attacked the village and massacred around 120 civilians, which is...
, on 16 April 1993, is an example of the savagery of the terror http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/603420.stm http://www.un.org/icty/transe14/971110ed.htm. Tihomir Blaškić
Tihomir Blaškic
Tihomir Blaškić is a Bosnian Croat army officer who was sentenced in 2000 to 45 years imprisonment at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia for war crimes as part of the Lašva valley ethnic cleansing...
was the officer of the Croat HVO army formation who was tried and convicted at the ICTY over his responsibility for this massacre. Blaškić served almost nine years in prison before the appeals panel acquitted him of most of the charges in July 2004, as the defence proved that he did not command all the HVO units in the area or any paramilitary units http://www.un.org/icty/glance/blaskic.htm.
On 24 September, the Security Council was informed by the Croatian Government that if the mandate of UNPROFOR was not amended to promote energetic implementation of the relevant resolutions of the Security Council, Croatia would be forced to request UNPROFOR to leave the country not later than 30 November 1993. Subsequent redefinition of the mandate occurred.
At the end of the year, the warring parties attempted to come to a cease-fire. The truce was implemented between Croat and Serb forces, but fighting went on in Bosnia between Bosniaks and Croats, and the humanitarian situations continued to deteriorate. Notably, Sarajevo continued to be bombarded by Bosnian Serb forces. It was also reported that units of the regular Croat army were supporting Bosnian Croat forces with heavy equipment and men, removing their insignias. This led to further protests from the UN. Use of force began to be discussed at a NATO summit held in Brussels on 10 and 11 January 1994. The Bosnian Serbs, following talks with high-ranking officials of the Russian Federation in Moscow, agreed to open the Tuzla
Tuzla
Tuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
airport for humanitarian purposes. At the same time, the relieving of UN troops in Srebrenica was allowed and the Canadian contingent was replaced by a Dutch contingent.
The situation in Sarajevo, however, remained extremely tense, with Bosnian Serb sniper fire deliberately aimed at civilians, and artillery and heavy mortar fire aimed at population areas. This strongly shaped Western public opinion, as a number of journalists were operating in Sarajevo, and murdered civilians were seen in the evening news on a regular basis. On 4 February 1994, a mortar shell fired at a suburb of Sarajevo killed 10 people and wounded 18. The next day, February 5, 1994, a mortar exploded in Sarajevo’s Markale market, leaving 68 dead and 200 injured in what was so far the bloodiest incident in Sarajevo in the 22 months of fighting. Exasperation at these provocations grew to the point where an ultimatum was sent, requiring the removal or surrender to the UNPROFOR of all heavy guns 20 km from Sarajevo (Bosnian and Bosnian Serb, with an exception for Pale
Pale (town)
Pale is a town and a municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located southeast of Bosnia's capital Sarajevo. The municipality of Pale is one of the six municipalities of the City of Istočno Sarajevo located in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.-Middle Ages:The area of Pale...
) within ten days. The ultimatum was satisfied on 17 February, with the heavy weapons that were not removed being regrouped in seven UNPROFOR-controlled spots.
On 23 February 1994, the cease-fire was brokered between Croat and Bosnian forces - the Washington Agreement - which ended their one-year long war and united the sides as the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the two political entities that compose the sovereign country of Bosnia and Herzegovina . The two entities are delineated by the Inter-Entity Boundary Line...
. UNPROFOR's role in this was to monitor the cease-fire and in addition even helped to rebuild local infrastructure and staff checkpoints within the federation area.
Positive developments and extension of mandate
On 24 March 1994, a plan for the re-opening of the TuzlaTuzla
Tuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
airport, for UNPROFOR and humanitarian use only, was published.
On 29 March 1994, in Zagreb, representatives of the Government of Croatia and the local Serb authorities in UNPAs concluded a cease-fire agreement aiming to achieve a lasting cessation of hostilities.
Concurrently, the mandate of the UNPROFOR was extended for another six months, and reinforcements were sent, amounting to 10,000 troops and a few hundred policemen and observers.
During 1994, UNPROFOR troops in Bosnia came under increased military attacks, resulting in several battle engagements (Operation Bøllebank
Operation Bøllebank
During the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Operation Bøllebank was the largest combat operation by Danish forces since 1864...
, Operation Amanda
Operation Amanda
Operation Amanda was an UNPROFOR mission led by Danish peacekeeping troops, with the aim of recovering an observation post near Gradačac, Bosnia and Herzegovina, on October 25, 1994.-The engagement:...
), with Bosnian Serb forces.
Assault Against Safe Areas
Shortly after the cease-fire between Croat and Serb forces, the Bosnian Serbs launched an assault against the Safe area of GoraždeGoražde
Goražde , is a city and municipality in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Drina river. It is located between Foča, Sokolac and Višegrad, and is administratively part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the center of the Bosnian Podrinje Canton.-Location:Goražde is situated on the...
, heavily shelling the town and surrounding villages. Protests and exhortations from the UN Security Council turned out to be ineffective, and on 10 and 11 April 1994, NATO launched air strikes against Bosnian Serb positions. In retaliation, Bosnian Serb forces captured many UN personnel, using them as human shields at sites expected to be bombed. The bombings turned out to be much less effective than the recent Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, which had conditioned the public's understanding of air strikes. In spite of the demonstration of power of the NATO, and protests of good faith from the Serbs, the shelling continued. In a similar situation to what had happened in Sarajevo, an ultimatum was issued, and by the 24th, most of the Serb troops had complied. These incidents led to another reflection about the status of the Safe Areas.
Attempts at Peace
Several Peace Plans had been rejected (the Carrington-Cutiliero plan, the Vance-Owen plan, the "HMS Invincible" package, the Owen-Stoltenburg plan, and the European Union Action Plan). At the end of July, a blueprint was designed by the Contact Group, consisting of the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany and Russia, which was accepted by the Croat, Serb and Bosnian parties. The Bosnian Serbs, however, refused the plan. In early August, in an attempt to coerce the Bosnian Serbs into accepting the plan, the Serbian government cut political and economic relationships with the Bosnian Serb leaders. This decision was welcomed by the UN Security Council. On 23 September, the UN Security Council officially welcomed the agreement of the warring parties to the peace plan, condemned the Bosnian Serb refusal, and strengthened the sanctions against the Bosnian Serb entity.Bosnian Serb Isolation
On 23 September 1994, in retaliation to the Bosnian Serb obstruction to the Peace Plan, the Security Council, by its Resolution 942United Nations Security Council Resolution 942
United Nations Security Council Resolution 942, adopted on September 23, 1994, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Council reinforced measures relating to safe areas under control of Bosnian Serb forces....
, severed all commercial and monetary links to the Bosnian Serb entity. Notably, this cut the flow of fuel to the Bosnian Serbs, a hard strategic blow.
Due to the extreme position taken by the Bosnian Serb government, the Yugoslav Federation (Serbia and Montenegro) itself had to take a strong stance against the Bosnian Serb entity. This led to the quasi-complete diplomatic isolation of the Bosnian Serb entity.
Deterioration in Security
In August 1994, the situation deteriorated again, particularly due to sniper activity, and despite the anti-sniper agreements. In Sarajevo, the bloody "Sniper AlleySniper Alley
"Sniper Alley" was the informal name primarily for Ulica Zmaja od Bosne , the main boulevard in Sarajevo which during the Bosnian War was lined with snipers' posts, and became infamous as a dangerous place for civilians to traverse...
" became famous and infamous http://www.friends-partners.org/bosnia/sniper.html. Deliberate attacks against UNPROFOR personnel or aircraft became frequent.
In October, the Bosnian Muslim forces, trapped in the Bihać pocket, attacked the Bosnian Serb forces in an attempt to end the siege of the city. The attack and the ensuing counter-attack by the Bosnian Serbs induced terror in the local population and another massive exodus of refugees. In deliberate contradiction with the "Safe Area" status of Bihać and the "No-flight" zones, Bosnian Serb airplanes made repeated attacks in the Bihać area, using cluster bombs and napalm.
In reaction to this threat, on 21 November, NATO airplanes destroyed the Udbina airstrip, located in the UNPA Sector South in Croatia. The following days, NATO airplanes again had to intervene, against Bosnian Serb anti-air missiles sites which had opened fire upon British jets, and against artillery sites which shelled Bihać. Instead of lowering their profile, the Bosnian Serbs retaliated by taking UN personnel hostage and restraining humanitarian aid transit.
On the diplomatic scene, all efforts to come to a cease-fire turned out to be to no avail, here again mostly because of Bosnian Serb obstruction—Dr. Karadžić
Radovan Karadžic
Radovan Karadžić is a former Bosnian Serb politician. He is detained in the United Nations Detention Unit of Scheveningen, accused of war crimes committed against Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats during the Siege of Sarajevo, as well as ordering the Srebrenica massacre.Educated as a...
declined the invitation of the UN Secretary-General.
UN hostages and the Vrbanja bridge
On the 26 May 1995 following NATO air raids on Pale as the Bosnian Serbs defied another UN ultimatum on heavy weapons, around 400 Blue Helmets were taken hostage, brought to strategic points as human shields, and shown in chains on Serbian TV.On the 27 May 1995, General Mladić
Ratko Mladić
Ratko Mladić is an accused war criminal and a former Bosnian Serb military leader. On May 31, 2011, Mladić was extradited to The Hague, where he was processed at the detention center that holds suspects for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia...
along with General Nuhić launched an assault against the UN observation point of the Vrbanja bridge. At 5 in the morning, the French captain commanding the position lost contact with the 12 men and went to investigate. A Serb dressed with a blue helmet and French body armour and uniform attempted to take him hostage, but was deterred by the escort, and the officer managed to escape. In the following hours, after intense shelling by ERC 90 Sagaie
ERC 90 Sagaie
The Panhard ERC 90 is a French six-wheeled armoured all terrain vehicle which is highly mobile and amphibious with an option of being NBC-proof. While various models were tested, only two versions of the ERC were developed and produced: the Lynx and the Sagaie...
armoured vehicles, the French stormed the post, killing four Serbs and capturing four others. Two French soldiers were killed.
At 12 o'clock, the Bosnian Serb radio broadcast that General Mladić had ordered to
- "deploy the captured members of the UNPROFOR, and the other foreign citizens who had acted as enemies of the Serbian people, at command posts, depots and other important facilities."
- "The United Nations in this particular situation have decided to hire a murderer, it is called the NATO alliance. It is a hired killer. If NATO wishes to continue with its air strikes then it will have to kill the UN troops here on the ground, because we have positioned UN troops and observers around potential targets that NATO might decide to go for. The international community therefore will have to pay a very heavy price. And it will not stop at that. The Serbs are determined to make a point to the whole world." (Jovan Zametica, Karadžić's spokesman)
On the 30 May, Ratko Mladić phoned Rupert Smith
Rupert Smith
General Sir Rupert Smith KCB, DSO & Bar, OBE, QGM was an officer in the British Army until his retirement in 2002. He was educated at the Haileybury and Imperial Service College and later at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.- Military career :...
and agreed not to put hostage Blue Helmets in chains, but to merely "bring" them on strategic sites. He also demanded "excuses" for the death of the four Serbian soldiers killed by the French at Vrbanja bridge, threatening to "be unable to guarantee the safety" of the UN forces in Goražde
Goražde
Goražde , is a city and municipality in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Drina river. It is located between Foča, Sokolac and Višegrad, and is administratively part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the center of the Bosnian Podrinje Canton.-Location:Goražde is situated on the...
.
The Fall of Srebrenica
On 12 July 1995 UNPROFOR failed to deter the Bosnian Serb attack on Srebrenica because they were not able to sufficiently reinforce the DutchNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
battalion in place, and the city was overrun. When the dual key practices effectively prevented any serious air support from materialising all the Dutch could do was evacuate the women and children. The Serbs held the Muslim men and massacred thousands of them. The safe area of Zepa also fell to Bosnian Serbs on 25 July The events in Srebrenica
Srebrenica
Srebrenica is a town and municipality in the east of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska. Srebrenica is a small mountain town, its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War, the town was the site of the July 1995 massacre,...
led to the Peacekeeping Best Practices Unit (PBPU) report
NATO initiated "Operation Deliberate Force" on August 30, 1995 in response to further provocations by Serb forces. At this point, UNPROFOR had become “militarily engaged” with NATO against the Bosnian Serb Army. NATO and UNPROFOR were increasingly difficult to separate by fall of 1995 in terms of both policy and actions taken on the ground.
In retaliation for the NATO bombings, the Serbs proceeded to retrieve their confiscated heavy weapons from the UN-controlled concentration points by force. The peace-keepers, massively out-numbered, had to surrender after brief symbolic fights. In several instances, Blue Helmets were surrounded in weapon storage areas by massively superior Serbian forces. General Hervé Gobillard, commanding officer for UN troops in Sarajevo, stated that the peacekeepers were "merely limited in their movements, yet [had] arms, ammunition food for many days and strict orders to defend their positions", but in the light of the hostage-takings, concerns were raised and the UN-led bombing stopped. Also, Serbian retaliations against civilians because of the bombings caused 70 dead and 150 wounded in Tuzla
Tuzla
Tuzla is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the time of the 1991 census, it had 83,770 inhabitants, while the municipality 131,318. Taking the influx of refugees into account, the city is currently estimated to have 174,558 inhabitants...
, and 5 dead in Goražde
Goražde
Goražde , is a city and municipality in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on the Drina river. It is located between Foča, Sokolac and Višegrad, and is administratively part of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the center of the Bosnian Podrinje Canton.-Location:Goražde is situated on the...
.
Later one winter’s day British UN troops carrying side arms were confronted by General Mladić skiing down the piste at Sarajevo’s former Olympic skiing resort but made no move for their guns; skiing behind Mladić were four bodyguards. Despite his Hague warrant, they decided to carry on skiing. Later NATO had a rethink, sending commandos to arrest war crimes suspects, but Mladić simply went underground. No amount of NATO action or UN demands, or even a $5 million bounty announced by Washington, could bring him in.
Operation Storm and Dayton
The above actions and the operations by Croat Forces in the Krajinas in Operation StormOperation Storm
Operation Storm is the code name given to a large-scale military operation carried out by Croatian Armed Forces, in conjunction with the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to gain back control of parts of Croatia which had been claimed by separatist ethnic Serbs, since early...
in August 1995 altered the political geography of BiH. Collectively these ultimately led to the Dayton Agreement
Dayton Agreement
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Dayton Accords, Paris Protocol or Dayton-Paris Agreement, is the peace agreement reached at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio in November 1995, and formally signed in Paris on...
and the deployment of the NATO led IFOR on 20 December 1995 to ensure the adherence of the Former Warring Factions (FWF) to the Military Annexes of The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Some of UNPROFOR troops were folded into the new IFOR forces, but for all intents and purposes, UNPROFOR no longer operated in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Perception in Participating Countries
The situation of the field was complex, due to the fact that there were three warring parties, and numerous para-military units, responsible for the most atrocious exations, and outside of the regular chain of command. Also, most of the parties would use ambiguous tactics. For instance (and not exhaustively) :- the Bosnian Serbs would use massive shelling of villages for their "ethnic cleansingEthnic cleansingEthnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
", while alleging their good faith. - General Mladić had ordered the shelling of a sector near the Sarajevo airport, while he was on official visit, on the express purpose of appearing heroic in front of the French Blue helmets and to cast doubts as to who was responsible for the bombardment.
- The Bosnian party would use the Safe Areas to the best of the tactical situation to storm Serb positions or villages.
- In numerous occasions, small groups of one of the warring parties would progress between enemy positions and UN positions and open fire on the Blue helmets in the hope of triggering a response from the UN troops.
- In the event of the Srebrenica massacreSrebrenica massacreThe Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, refers to the July 1995 killing, during the Bosnian War, of more than 8,000 Bosniaks , mainly men and boys, in and around the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by units of the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of...
, which triggered a number of investigations to determine the reasons for the failure of the UN to deter Serbian forces to storm the town, accusations have been made, notably by General Morillon, that the Serbs actually fell in a propaganda trap used by the Bosnians to reinforce their image of victims and blur their use of Safe Areas as bases. Morillon said that he thought the hatred of the Serbs toward the population of Srebrenica had been largely underestimated by all parties, and the massacre could be explained as a loss of control of the Serbian hierarchy upon some of its troops. (Morillon's speculations about "loss of control" were rendered irrelevant by the verdicts of genocide handed down by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.)
A great deal of resentment and frustration arose in the participating countries, especially in those whose troops had been in contact with the most outrageous situations; for instance (and not exclusively)
- The involvement of the British battalion, especially concerning the AhmićiAhmiciAhmići is a village in central Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the municipality of Vitez in the Lašva river valley.In April 1993 during Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing, the Croatian Defence Council forces indiscriminately attacked the village and massacred around 120 civilians, which is...
massacre, has inspired the film WarriorsWarriors (TV series)Warriors is a British television drama serial, written by Leigh Jackson, produced by Nigel Stafford-Clark and directed by Peter Kosminsky. It starred Matthew Macfadyen, Damian Lewis and Ioan Gruffudd. The music was written by Debbie Wiseman...
by the BBC. - The involvement of the Dutch battalion (DutchBat) in SrebrenicaSrebrenicaSrebrenica is a town and municipality in the east of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska. Srebrenica is a small mountain town, its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War, the town was the site of the July 1995 massacre,...
inspired The EnclaveThe EnclaveThe Enclave is a three-part series directed by Willem van de Sande Bakhuyzen, about the fall of Srebrenica and the Dutch government's failure to protect the town from attackers. The series originally aired by Netherlands Public Broadcasting. The series was made in 2002...
. - The involvement of the Canadian battalion (CanBat) in KrajinaKrajina-Etymology:In old-Croatian, this earliest geographical term appeared at least from 10th century within the Glagolitic inscriptions in Chakavian dialect, e.g. in Baška tablet about 1105, and also in some subsequent Glagolitic texts as krayna in the original medieval meaning of inlands or mainlands...
inspired Peacekeepers. - The general situation in Sarajevo inspired the (somewhat Manichean and simplistic) comic Sarajevo TangoSarajevo TangoSarajevo Tango is an anti-war comic book/graphic novel by Hermann initially released in 1995 . Sarajevo Tango is also the first Hermann’s big work done in direct color, and according to several critics, one of his finest....
, by HermannHermann HuppenHermann Huppen is a Belgian comic book artist. He is better known under his pen-name Hermann. He is most famous for his post-apocalyptic comic Jeremiah which was made into a television series.-Biography:...
. (See samples http://www.hinternet.de/comic/s/sarajevo.php http://www.bedetheque.com/index.php?S=255, http://www.gallier.be/hermann.htm) - The attack against French Blue Helmets by Serb forces disguised as French UN Troops on the bridge of VrbanjaVrbanjaVrbanja, a village in the region of Spačva, Croatia, 24 km southeast of Županja; elevation 87 m. Chief occupations include farming, livestock breeding and forestry. The village is located on the regional road Vinkovci - Gunja - Brčko . Vrbanja named after the willows...
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/war/war_43_199607_07.txt. - The taking of hostages amongst UN peace-keeping personnel when Bosnian Serb forces proceeded to retrieve their heavy weapons from UN controlled regroupement points by force.
- Particularly moving episodes, such as the "Sarajevo's Romeo and Juliet" http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/Bosnia/updates/9604/10/, inevitable in any conflict, but abundantly mediatised. The "Sarajevo's Romeo and Juliet" incident inspired the documentary Romeo and Juliet in SarajevoRomeo and Juliet in SarajevoRomeo and Juliet in Sarajevo was an international documentary about the deaths of Admira Ismić and Boško Brkić . The couple were natives of the former Yugoslavia, living in the city of Sarajevo...
. - In French, the word "sniper" entered the common vocabulary after "Sniper Alley" became famous, and it quite supplanted the usual words tireur d'élite, tireur embusqué or franc-tireur.
External links
- UNPROFOR official page
- UNPROFOR Dane veterans page
- Dutchbat 1 Netherlands
- Proceedings of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Testimony by Lieutenant Colonel Bryan Watters
- UN Protection Force (Yugoslavia) Medal awarded for 90 days' service in the Mission.
- Bosnia: a frustrating mission
- Audition du général Philippe MORILLON, commandant de la FORPRONU (octobre 1992-juillet 1993), commandant de la Force d'action rapide (1994–1996)
- Audition du général Jean COT, commandant de la FORPRONU
- General Philippe Morillon, Paroles de soldat, Balland, 1996
- General Philippe Morillon, Croire et oser, chronique de Sarajevo, Grasset, 1993
- Chief Logistics Officer UNPROFOR 1995 Abbas Ali KhanAbbas Ali KhanBrigadier Abbas Ali Khan , is a former high ranking army officer of Pakistan Army and the corporate businessman. He is the son of Major General Rehmat Ali Shah Bokhari, was born in Sahiwal, Pakistan...