• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Continued support for weapons and ammunition management training in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Swiss Government

Press release
Published on 29 October 2025

Berne, 29.10.2025 -- At its meeting on 29 October, the Federal Council decided to continue assisting the armed forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina on a bilateral basis in developing their abilities in relation to the safe storage and management of weapons and ammunition. By sending up to 10 Swiss weapons and ammunition experts, the Federal Council is ensuring that the support project, which has been running for several years, can be brought to a successful conclusion.

In 2011, the Federal Council decided to support the armed forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina in ensuring the safe storage and management of weapons and ammunition as part of the EU's EUFOR ALTHEA mission. However, due to the escalating geopolitical situation, EUFOR has been increasingly focusing on its core mission for some time now, i.e. guaranteeing security and stability in the region. As a result, non-executive activities, such as capacity building in relation to secure weapons and ammunition management, have been gradually terminated.

Implementing a sustainable programme

Following the discontinuation of the related international mandate, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Switzerland agreed to continue their activities on a bilateral basis. The aim is to eliminate risks that still exist for the Bosnian Armed Forces and the population as a result of the inadequate management of weapons and ammunition. By deploying up to 10 weapons and ammunition experts, Switzerland is ensuring that the existing programme will continue to be implemented sustainably and can be brought to a successful conclusion. Depending on how the work progresses, completion is planned by the end of 2027, after which inspections will be carried out from time to time. The costs of these activities will continue to be covered by the peacebuilding budget of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS).

Positive influence on security in Bosnia and Herzegovina

As part of the international community, Switzerland, working with Norway, provides mobile training teams to support the capacity building of the armed forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In training programmes, they gain the expertise required to reduce their stocks of weapons and ammunition in accordance with international guidelines, to store the remaining stocks safely and to manage them properly.

In specific terms, this can be seen, for example, in the training programme completed in 2019 in relation to ammunition management or in the progress made in reducing surplus stocks and the safe storage of small arms and light weapons (SALW), which are now assessed, labelled and registered according to their condition in a system of sustainable and efficient warehouse management that fully complies with national and international regulations. The support provided enables the armed forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina to develop expertise that will have a lasting positive impact on security and thus on stability in the region.