Troops join EU peacekeepers in Bosnia
Irish soldiers today took up duties with the new EU peacekeeping force in Bosnia.
The 7,200-strong EUFOR is taking over from NATO in its most complex and ambitious peacekeeping mission.
Around 40 Irish soldiers will be responsible for checking the weapons dumps of the Bosnian-Croat and Serbian armies, as well as monitoring de-mining operations.
A Defence Forces spokesman said: “This was finally approved in the Dáil last Friday. As part of the planning process, we sent out people in advance, which we were entitled to do without approval.”
The advance party of 20 Irish soldiers are based in Tuzla, a town with a population of 100,000 people in north-east Bosnia. They will be joined by another 21 soldiers by the end of the month.
The troops had carried out training exercises with Austrian, Swedish, Polish and other soldiers at the UN Training School in the Curragh.
Another 12 Irish peacekeepers who worked with NATO’s S-For in Sarajevo will continue their duties under the new EUFOR.
The process of rebuilding is ongoing in Bosnia since the end of the bitter civil war in 1995. More than 250,000 people were killed while millions were forced to flee their homes.
The 470-strong EU police force in Bosnia is headed by the Garda Assistant Commissioner Kevin Carty and includes three members of the Gardai.
There are also 213 Irish soldiers serving as peacekeepers in Kosovo.
EUFOR, which was officially launched in Bosnia in a ceremony today, has received a 12-month mandate from the UN Security Council. It will be commanded by British Major General David Leakey.
Around 80% of the existing NATO S-For troops in Bosnia were from EU states, so the transfer to EUFOR simply required new badges on their uniforms.
However, the EU sees it as the first move towards a rapid reaction force that will allow it to deal with international conflicts itself rather than relying on NATO.
Fine Gael MEP and TD Gay Mitchell said EUFOR could be the blueprint for future EU operations.
He added that he welcomed the participation of Irish troops in the troubled region.
“Ireland has a responsibility, as do all the other member states of the European Union, to maintain peace and stability across Europe,” he said.
He called on the Government to sign up to a European Common Defence Policy which would allow the Dáil to decide on Irish participation on a case by case basis.
