P R E S S - E U C o u n c i l S e c r e t a r i a t T e l : + 3 2 ( 0 ) 2 2 8 1 7 6 4 0 / 5 1 5 0 / 6 3 1 9 presse.pesd@consilium.europa.eu http://www.consilium.europa.eu/esdp

FACTS AND FIGURES Theatre: Bosnia and Herzegovina Headquarters: Sarajevo (Camp Butmir) Starting Date: 2 December 2004 Head of Mission: The EU Operation Commander is General Sir John McColl (UK). The EU Force Commander as of 4 December 2008 is Major General Stefano Castagnotto (Italy) Mission strength: 2,200 Mission budget: The common costs of the operation are EUR 27 million. These costs are paid through contributions by EU Member States to a financial mechanism (Athena) based on GDP Contributing states: 22 EU Member States, Albania, Chile, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Switzerland and Turkey

www.consilium.europa.eu/eufor-althea and www.euforbih.org

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EU military operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina

(Operation EUFOR ALTHEA) Updated: May 2009

Althea/15

Mission background The military operation ALTHEA in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was launched on 2 December 2004 and has contributed to the maintenance of the safe and secure environment in BiH. The decision to launch Operation ALTHEA followed the decision by NATO to conclude its SFOR-operation and the adoption by the UN Security Council of resolution 1575 authorising the deployment of an EU force in BiH. In the framework of Operation ALTHEA, the EU deployed 7000 troops, under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, to ensure continued compliance with the Dayton/Paris Agreement and to contribute to a safe and secure environment in BiH. Operation ALTHEA is carried out with recourse to NATO assets and capabilities, under the "Berlin Plus" arrangements. Mandate and objectives Following a Council decision in December 2006, EUFOR was reconfigured during 2007. The force now numbers some 2200 troops on the ground, backed up by over-the-horizon reserves. EUFOR continues to act in accordance with its peace enforcement mandate under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, as specified in UN Security Council Resolutions 1575 (2004), 1639 (2005), 1722 (2006), and 1785 (2007), renewed by the Security Council on 20 November 2008 (Security Council Resolution 1845 (2008)).

The European Union's European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) includes the gradual framing of a common defence policy which might in time lead to a common defence. The ESDP allows the Union to develop its civilian and military capacities for crisis management and conflict prevention at international level, thus helping to maintain peace and international security, in accordance with the United Nations Charter. The ESDP includes a strong conflict prevention component.

More information and background documents available on: www.consilium.europa.eu/esdp

The main objectives of Operation ALTHEA are: • First and foremost, to maintain a safe and

secure environment in BiH and to ensure continued compliance with the Dayton/Paris agreement (General Framework Agreement for Peace/GFAP);

• Also, to support the international community’s High Representative/EU Special Representative for BiH, Valentin Inzko, and the local authorities.

EUFOR supports the implementation of a number of tasks that have been transferred from the operation to local authorities, such as: countermines activities, control over lower airspace, military movement control as well as weapons storage sites management. EUFOR actively continues to provide support to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in pursuit of persons indicted for war crimes, while noting that the responsibility for full cooperation with ICTY rests with the BiH authorities. It also contributes to defence reform in BiH. A multinational manoeuvre battalion is based in Sarajevo and EUFOR also retains its presence throughout the country through the liaison and observation teams (LOTs). The Multinational manoeuvre battalion, based in Camp Butmir, is made up of troops from Spain, Hungary, Poland and Turkey. EUFOR retains its capacity to react throughout the country to any possible security challenges. The Operation Commander is General Sir John McColl (UK). The EU's Political and Security Committee exercises the political control and strategic direction of the operation, under the responsibility of the Council of the EU. In the context of the European Union's overall commitment in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the General Affairs and External Relations Council, in May 2009, noted that, despite the challenging political environment, the security situation in BiH remained stable. The Council welcomed the positive contribution of the force to the safe and secure environment in BiH, and added that EUFOR continued to provide reassurance and remained ready to respond to possible security challenges throughout the country. The Council welcomed the progress on the preparatory work for a possible evolution of Operation ALTHEA towards a non-executive capacity-building and training operation and reconfirmed that it would keep this planning work under regular review so that a decision on the future of the operation could be taken once the necessary conditions had been met. Political developments, including the future role of the EU Special Representative, will have to be taken into account.