The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosnian: Armija Republike Bosne i Hercegovine; Cyrillic: Армија Републике Босне и Херцеговине; ARBiH), often referred to as Bosnian Army, was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was established by the government of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992 following the outbreak of the Bosnian War. Following the end of the war, and the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement in 1995, it was after transformed into the Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The ARBiH was the only military force on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina recognised as legal by other governments. Under the State Defense Reform Law the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina were unified into a single structure, the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (OSBiH), making entity armies defunct.
History
=== Creation and composition === From July 1991 to January 1992, during the Croatian War of Independence, the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Serb paramilitaries used Bosnian territory to wage attacks on Croatia. The Army of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was formed on 15 April 1992 during the early days of the Bosnian War. Before the ARBiH was officially created, a number of paramilitary and civil defense groups were established. The Patriotic League (PL) and the local Territorial Defence Force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (TORBiH) were the official army while paramilitaries such as the Zelene Beretke (Green Berets) and Crni Labudovi (Black Swans) units were also active. Other irregular groups included Bosnian mafia groups, as well as collections of police and former JNA soldiers. The army was formed in poor circumstances and suffered from a very limited supply of arms. Critical deficiencies included tanks and other heavy weaponry. Alija Izetbegović agreed to disarm the existing Territorial Defense forces on the demand of the JNA. This was defied by Bosnian Croats and Muslim organizations that gained control of many facilities and weapons of the TORBiH. The first commander of the ARBiH was Sefer Halilović.
=== 1992 === In 1992, the ARBiH was losing most of the battles and consequently, 70% of Bosnia and Herzegovina was under Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), and later Bosnian Serb army (VRS) control, with Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, besieged. The ARBiH had defended Sarajevo with light weaponry, most of them captured from hostile forces or bought off the black market. The army was surrounded and the transfer of supplies was hard, if not impossible. However, ARBiH forces within the Bosanska Krajina (Bihać pocket) region were steadily defending the territory despite being surrounded by hostile forces. Muajhideen arrived in central Bosnia in the latter half of 1992 with the aim of helping their Bosnian Muslim co-religionists in fights against Serb and Croat forces. Initially they mainly came from Arab countries, later from other Muslim-majority countries.
=== 1993 === 1993 saw no major changes in the front lines against Serbs. Instead, this year marked the start of the Croat–Bosniak War in Central Bosnia and in Herzegovina, notably the Mostar region. In the broader Mostar area the Serbs provided military support for the Muslim side and hired out tanks and heavy artillery to the ARBiH. The VRS artillery shelled HVO positions on the hills overlooking Mostar. Pressured by heavily armed Serb forces, the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) shifted its focus from defending against the VRS to securing territories envisioned as part of a "common Croatian state." Because these territories were under the control of the Bosnian government, the HVO, acting as a subordinate command of the Croatian Army, initiated offensives against ARBiH-held areas to consolidate its control. The HVO with great engagement from the military of the Republic of Croatia and material support from Serbs, attacked Bosniak civilian population in Herzegovina and in central Bosnia, starting ethnic cleansing of Bosniak-populated territories, such as the Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing. In early September ARBiH launched an operation known as Operation Neretva '93 against the HVO. The ARBiH made limited gains in the area of northern Herzegovina and around Mostar, but did not achieve a breakthrough to the southern Neretva, where the HVO retained control. Vastly under-equipped Bosnian forces, fighting on two fronts, were able to repel Croats and gain territory against them on every front. At this time, due to its geographic position, Bosnia was surrounded by Croat and Serb forces from all sides. There was no way to import weapons or food. What saved Bosnia at this time was its vast industrial complex (steel and other heavy industry), which was able to switch to military production. After a short but bloody war, and once Croats realized that their partnership with Serbs would not bring them any territorial gains, they agreed to the U.S. leadership's "Washington Treaty" peace agreement. From that point on, Croat and Bosnian government forces fought as allies against Serbs. The Intra-Bosnian Muslim War was a civil war fought between the ARBiH loyal to central government of Alija Izetbegović in Sarajevo and the Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia loyal to Fikret Abdić in Velika Kladuša from 1993 in the region of the western Bosnia. On 13 August 1993, the Bosnian government officially organized foreign volunteers into the detachment known as El Mudžahid in order to impose control and order. The foreign mujahideen sometimes recruited local young men into the foreign mujahideen units. The mujahideen also participated in battles against the HVO alongside ARBiH units.
=== 1994 === The Washington Agreement was signed in March 1994, reintegrating Bosniak and Croat alliance. The objective was to form a strong force that could fight the much stronger and better equipped VRS. This was the time of frequent peace negotiations. Split Agreement was signed in Split, Croatia on 22 July 1995. It called on the Croatian Army (HV) to intervene militarily in Bosnia and Herzegovina, primarily in relieving the siege of Bihać.
=== 1995 === Despite the loss of several enclaves, notably Srebrenica, 1995 was marked by HVO and ARBiH offensives and later by NATO intervention. Following the Split Agreement, the Croatian Army, with cooperation from the ARBiH and the HVO, launched a series of operations: Flash, Summer '95, Storm and Mistral 2. In conjunction, Bosnian forces launched operations like Sana. Bosnian and Croat armies were on the offensive in this phase. From August to December 1995, Serb forces were defeated and driven out of the majority of Croatia and western Bosnia, and the ethnic Serb population fled from these parts. Following the second Markale massacre, a NATO intervention was launched, which destroyed much of the VRS' infrastructure in just a few days through Operation Deliberate Force. The war ended with the signing of the Dayton Accord.
Commanders
Alija Izetbegović (the Supreme Commander of the Bosnian Armed Forces) Hasan Efendić (first commander of the Territorial Defence Force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina) Sefer Halilović (Chief of Staff of the Main Staff and Commander of the Bosnian Army, 1992–1993) Rasim Delić (Commander of Main Staff and Commander of the Bosnian Army, 1993–1995) Jovan Divjak (deputy of the ARBiH commander, 1992–1995) Stjepan Šiber (deputy of the ARBiH commander, 1992–1995)
Organization
=== Pre-Centralization === The Political leadership in Sarajevo had met in Mehurići to decide alternatives if Slovenia and Croatia should follow their stated plans to declare independence. After this board meeting Hasan Čengić met with Rusmir Mahmutćehajić to propose the formation of a paramilitary that would be an adjunct of SDA. Once approved by Alija Izetbegović the first defense organization known as the "Patriotic League" was formed. Another paramilitary known as the "Green Berets" would be formed from the people to help places where there where no defense organized by the local authority. As Bosnia declared independence the "Territorial Defense" was established as the state's official army and the Patriotic League integrated a month later. The existence of other armed groups would lead the government to request the unification of all armed entities into one formation creating one official armed forces. This reform request would not last long as all other entities except the separatist ones would join finally establishing a centralized army. The newly reformed army would still be known as the "Territorial Defense" until July where the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was officially established.
Paramilitaries and Defense Forces
=== Post-Centralization === The new army was divided into corps, each stationed in a particular territory. In 1993, most brigades were renamed as Mountain troops given that the lack of heavy weapons made it organizationally pointless to list them as infantry or motorized. In addition, Bosnian terrain favored light infantry over armored and mechanized formations. The special forces alongside the military police were controlled directly by the general staff of the army, which was initially based in Sarajevo before moving to Kakanj in 1994, while maintaining key installations such as the main logistics center in Visoko and the military school center in Zenica. This centralized command did not prevent corps and individual brigades from forming their own smaller special operations units and military police battalions independently.
Army Corps and Independent Divisions
General Staff Units
Mobilized Police Forces
Equipment
Infantry weapons of the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Assault rifles and machine guns
Pistols
Infantry anti-tank weapons
Artillery
Tanks
Armored personnel carriers
Self-propelled anti-aircraft artillery
Anti-aircraft artillery
Self-propelled artillery
== See also == Bosnian War 1992 Yugoslav campaign in Bosnia Intra-Bosnian Muslim War Croat–Bosniak War Croatian War of Independence
References
== Bibliography == Ramet, Sabrina P.; Stan, Lavinia (2024). East Central Europe since 1989: Politics, Culture, and Society. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-139-48750-4. Ramet, Sabrina P.; Stan, Lavinia (2010). East Central Europe since 1989: Politics, Culture, and Society. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-032-31920-9. Viktor Bezruchenko (2022). The Civil War in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-95): Political, Military, and Diplomatic History. Houston, TX: Strategic Book Publishing. ISBN 978-1682357125. Lauterpacht, Elihu; Greenwood, C. J.; Oppenheimer, A. G. (2002). International Law Reports. Vol. 122. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-80775-3. Bougarel, Xavier (2017). Islam and Nationhood in Bosnia-Herzegovina: Surviving Empires. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-350-00360-6.
== External links == Ministry of Defense Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (in English) Vojska.net Armijabih.com
