From 1992, together with the Western European Union, NATO monitored and enforced UN sanctions in the Adriatic to limit the flow of arms to the area. The Alliance also monitored and enforced the UN no-fly zone over Bosnia; provided close air support to the UN Protection Force (UNPROFOR) tasked with the protection of personnel involved in humanitarian work in the region; and carried out air strikes to lift the siege of Sarajevo.

In 1995, a combination of military pressures and diplomacy finally brought the different sides to the bargaining table. NATO forces helped prepare the groundwork by conducting air operations against Bosnian Serb forces for 12 days in August and September 1995. This action helped shift the balance of power between parties on the ground and persuade the Bosnian Serb leadership to accept the peace settlement.

A peace agreement was negotiated in Dayton, Ohio, and then signed in Paris on 14 December 1995. The United Nations gave NATO a mandate to help to implement the agreement and, on 16 December, the North Atlantic Council agreed to launch the largest military operation ever undertaken by NATO.

The Implementation Force, consisting of troops from NATO, Partner countries and other nations was sent to Bosnia to maintain the peace, keep the warring factions separated, oversee the transfer of territory between the parties in accordance with the peace agreement, and supervise the storage of heavy weapons in approved sites. Once those initial tasks were accomplished, IFOR supervised continued compliance with the agreement and helped to begin the reconstruction of Bosnia. Some 2,500 kilometres of roads were reopened, over 60 bridges were repaired or replaced, and the airport in Sarajevo and important railway lines were brought back into operation.

IFOR had been given one year to accomplish its tasks. At the end of that year, in December 1996, it was decided that without continuing external encouragement and assistance, it was too early to expect the peace to last. IFOR was therefore succeeded by a Stabilisation Force, known as SFOR, tasked with deterring or if necessary preventing a resumption of fighting, continuing IFOR’s work of encouraging the restoration of a more normal civilian environment, and supporting civilian organisations trying to establish the basis for a lasting peace in Bosnia.

IFOR and SFOR have demonstrated the importance of the partnerships the NATO Allies have established with other countries.