Since December 1995, the United States European Command has provided forces in support of NATO-led operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

20 June 1998 marked the transition from the NATO-led Stabilization Force (SFOR) to a slightly smaller force. Simultaneously, Operation Joint Guard terminated and Operation Joint Forge commenced. Operation Joint Forge continues to build on the successes of Operations Joint Guard and Joint Endeavor.

U.S. Forces

The United States has agreed to provide a force of approximately 6,900 U.S. personnel to help maintain a capable military force in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The U.S. will support SFOR by continuing to provide the headquarters and most of the troops for one of the three multinational divisions in the force and by providing other personnel, units and equipment to various parts of the SFOR organization conducting the operation.

The majority of the U.S. forces will be located in northeast Bosnia, in the Multinational Division North (MND-N) sector. The sector headquarters will continue to be located at Tuzla, Bosnia.

As of July, 1998, units that are currently deployed to Bosnia include:

2nd Brigade

1st Armored Division

1st Battalion, 35th Armor Regiment

1st Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment

40th Engineer Battalion

1st Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment

11th Aviation Regiment

Operation Joint Forge and SFOR are commanded by General Eric K. Shinseki, U.S. Army. He also serves as Commanding General, United States Army, Europe and 7th Army.

Timeline and Endstate

No timeline for the duration of Operation Joint Forge has been established. The mission will be assessed periodically and the force commitment will be adjusted, as circumstances require. From the very beginning, the U.S. has been committed to supporting peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina by implementing the Dayton Peace Accords, partly through participating in the NATO-led military force. NATO's aim is to achieve an end state of a secure environment adequate for the consolidation of the peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina without further need for a NATO-led military force.