21 Days @ Wright-Patterson Air Force Base

"'Dayton' has entered the language as shorthand for a certain type of diplomacy: lock everyone up until they reach an agreement.

It is a high-wire act without a safety net. Much work must precede the plunge into such an all-or-nothing environment. The site must be just right. The goals must be clearly defined. The consequences of failure are great. But when the conditions are right, Dayton can produce dramatic results.

WARREN CHRISTOPHER: “The eyes of the world are on Dayton, Ohio.”

USA Negotiations Team Goals:

• Turn the sixty-day-cease-fire into a permanent peace.
• To gain agreement for a multiethnic state.
• We would not legitimize Serb aggression or encourage Croat annexation.

Balkan priorities:

• For Tudjman, it was eastern Slavonia; he did not even mention Bosnia.
• For Milosevic, it was sanctions.
• Izetbegovic and Silajdzic told Christopher again that we had to renegotiate the Federation agreement before serious territorial discussions with the Serbs started.

US negotiators had won acceptance of the principle that Bosnia and Herzegovina should be preserved as a unified and independent state; NATO would enforce the peace, and an international civilian administration would set about rebuilding the country. The accords also spelt out ambitious goals for holding elections, returning refugees, and uniting the country."

(Excerpts from Richard Holbrooke’s book “To End a War”)

Key events during the 21-day negotiations in Dayton are presented here. 
You can find more details in our Dayton - Album.