The relief of Sarajevo forced a turning point. Under relentless NATO bombardment and international pressure, Serbian forces withdrew, and for the first time, the government of Serbia recognized Bosnia-Herzegovina’s independence. It was a reluctant acknowledgment, extracted not through diplomacy but through force.

This marked the first decisive action by the United Nations in post-Cold War Europe. After years of inaction and failed peacekeeping efforts, the international response to this war set the stage for future interventions. The airstrikes and military operations that ended the siege would serve as a blueprint for NATO’s role in Kosovo just a few years later, as well as future conflicts where Western powers would justify intervention under the banner of humanitarianism.

The war in Bosnia was not just another regional conflict. It was the first true test of international order in the wake of communism’s collapse—a test that exposed both the failures and the evolving role of global military alliances in a world no longer defined by the Cold War.

Sarajevo. May 1991 - December 1995.
Bosnian Forces: 150,000 Troops.
Serbian Forces: 80,000 Troops.

Additional Reading and Episode Research:

• Gow, James. Triumph of the Lack of Will.
• Judah, Tim. The Serbs: Myth, History, and the Destruction of Yugoslavia.
• Cohen, Roger. Hearts Grown Brutal: Sagas of Sarajevo.

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