BALKANS SECURITY. Current and Projected Factors Affecting Regional Stability
Abstract
As of the late 198Os, the former Yugoslavia was a diverse federation of six republics, comprised of many different ethnic groups that were often based on religious affiliation. The dissolution of the former Yugoslavia in 1991 led to two sets of extended armed conflict, the first in Croatia and Bosnia from 1991 through 1995 and the second in and around Serbia's province of Kosovo from early 1998 through mid-1999. The warring parties to the conflicts in Croatia and Bosnia-specifically, Yugoslavia, Croatia, Croatian Serbs, and Bosnia's three major ethnic groups-were all fighting over control of specific territories tied to each group's own definition of its state, with some groups fighting for ethnically pure states. During and after the Kosovo conflict, the local combatants- Kosovar Albanian insurgents and Yugoslav security forces-had mutually exclusive goals. While the insurgents fought for the independence of Kosovo, Yugoslav security forces, most of whom are Serb, fought to retain Yugoslavia's sovereignty over the province. NATO entered this conflict on March 24, 1999, when it initiated a bombing campaign against Yugoslavia to force an agreement that would end Yugoslavia's aggression in Kosovo. The international community reached agreements with the former warring parties that ended the conflicts and allowed the establishment of large, complex peace operations, first in Bosnia and later in Kosovo. Each operation included a large NATO-led force to enforce the military aspects of the agreements, as well as a substantial international civilian presence. These operations were designed, among other things, to assist the parties in complying with the agreements and to build democratic, multiethnic institutions.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 2000
- Accession Number
- ADA377191
Entities
People
- B. P. Hickey
- E. J. Espinola
- Harold J. Johnson Jr
- Judith A. Mccloskey
- M. E. Guran
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office