The Role of the OSCE in Bosnia 1995–1996: A First-hand Account
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61007/QdC.2026.2.438Keywords:
Bosnia Herzegovina, OSCE mission 1996, Dayton Accords, Banja Luka, ethnic cleansingAbstract
This essay recounts the author’s personal experiences in the 1996 OSCE mission in Bosnia Herzegovina, organising post-Dayton elections amid ethnic divisions. It juxtaposes poignant veteran reunions, mission diversity (Western/Eastern staff), and Banja Luka’s wartime horrors with reflections on Dayton’s flawed ethnic architecture, nationalist manipulations, and stalled reconciliation. Contrasting 1990s optimism for multilateralism with 2020s regressions fueled by Russia-West tensions, it laments brain drain and elite exploitation of memory, finding cautious hope in culture, tourism, and multiethnic sports.
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Merlicco, G. (2023), Una passione balcanica. Calcio e politica nell’ex Jugoslavia dall’era socialista ai giorni nostri, Nardò: Besa Muci.
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Milano, R. (2024), L’Italia, la Federazione russa e la cooperazione paneuropea (1993-1994), in Stefano Baldi, Luciano Monzali, Italia-Helsinki 50. Dall’atto finale di Helsinki del 1975 all’Osce di oggi, pp.267-304, Napoli: Editoriale Scientifica.
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