GREATER-SERBIAN AGGRESSION AGAINST CROATIA IN THE 1990s

The End of the War and the Partition of Bosnia and Herzegovina In addition to liberating its own territory, Croatia also contributed considerably to the liberation of the occupied territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In coordination with the Army of BH, and on the basis of the agreement between the Presidents of the Republic of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina of 22 July 1995, the Croatian Army and the Croatian Defence Council liberated about 5,000 sq.km. of territory in the southwestern and western parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina formerly occupied by Serbian units: about 1,600 sq.km in operation “Ljeto ’95” [Summer ’95] (25-30 July 1995), 2,500 sq.m. (including the towns of Jajce and Drvar, and the Oštrelj pass) in operation “Maestral” (8-15 September 1995), and 800 sq.m. (including Mrkonjić Grad) in operation “Južni potez” [Southern Move] (9-11 October 1995). An attempt of the Croatian Army to cross the Una and enter Bosanska Krajina failed with considerable casualties.

The success of the Croatian but also of the Bosniak military in Bosnia and Herzegovina made possible the Dayton (Ohio, US) Peace Agreement concluded on 21 November 1995 and its signing in Paris on 14 December 1995.

This finally marked the end of the war started by the open aggression against Croatia in the summer of 1991 by Serbia, the JNA and SerbianMontenegrin forces. According to the Dayton Agreement Bosnia and Herzegovina – actually divided – was structured as a state with 2 entities and 3 constituent peoples. The Serbian entity (Republika Srpska) got 49% of the territory, and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina 51% in spite of the fact that the Serbian leaders (S. Milošević and R. Karadžić) and Serbian politics were named as the main culprits for the bloodshed in the former Yugoslavia.

According to the 1991 census, the Serbs accounted for 31.1% of the population of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1,369,258) and owned 32% 177