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Bosnia
In the early 1990s, Dutch Defence personnel were deployed to the former Yugoslavia for the first time. Following the death of Yugoslav leader Tito and the collapse of communism, the central government in Belgrade had slowly but surely lost its grip on the constituent republics.
In June 1991, the constituent republics of Croatia and Slovenia proclaimed their independence. This led to intervention by the Yugoslav federal army in both constituent republics, and fighting which was particularly heavy in Croatia.
The international community then sent observers, including observers from the Netherlands, to Croatia and Slovenia to carry out work for the European Community Monitoring Mission.
In the years to come, Dutch military personnel would be sent to the Balkans time and again in response to the developments in the various constituent republics. Initially, the deployments were concentrated on Croatia and Slovenia, but at a later stage, the focus shifted to Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo. In addition, Dutch personnel have been deployed to countries such as Albania and Italy as part of operations in or around the former Yugoslavia or as a result of the events taking place there.
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