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World Marks 10th Anniversary Of Dayton Accords


The signing of the Dayton agreement in Paris on 14 December 1995 (AFP) 21 November 2005 -- A series of events is planned today to mark the 10th anniversary of the Dayton Accords that ended the 1992-95 war between Bosnia's Muslims, Serbs, and Croats and established their current joint state.


In Brussels, European Union foreign ministers are expected to mark the anniversary by approving the start of negotiations setting Bosnia on the path to possible membership in the EU.


The members of Bosnia's tripartite presidency are expected to attend events in Washington to commemorate the U.S.-brokered pact, which was agreed 21 November 1995 by the then Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian presidents at the Wright-Patterson Air Force base in Dayton, in the American state of Ohio.


No official events are planned today in Bosnia, as the country will hold official ceremonies on 14 December, the date when the peace deal was formally signed in Paris.


Reports from Washington on 20 November said senior U.S. and Bosnian officials have been discussing possible revisions to Bosnia's constitution to strengthen the authority of the central government and national parliament as the country prepares for possible membership in the EU and NATO.


The more than three years of fighting of the Bosnian war killed some 200,000 people and created some 2 million refugees. Some 1 million refugees have returned to the country.


(Reuters/AP/AFP)

Meet The Newsmakers

Meet The Newsmakers


As part of its coverage of the 10th annversary of the Dayton Accord, RFE/RL spoke with Christian Schwarz-Schilling, who served as an international mediator in Bosnia-Herzegovina for nearly a decade and is now Germany's candidate to succeed Britain's Paddy Ashdown as the international community's and EU's high representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

(To listen the RFE/RL's interview with Mr. Schwarz-Schilling, click here for Real Audio or here for Windows Media.)


RFE/RL also spoke with Wolfgang Petritsch, the international community's high representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1999-2002.

(To hear RFE/RL's interview with Mr. Petritsch, click here for Real Audio or here for Windows Media.)
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