The United States used its military in the Balkans during the 1990s to...

The United States used its military in the Balkans during the 1990s primarily for peacekeeping and to help stabilize the region, which was experiencing significant ethnic conflict and violence, particularly following the breakup of the former Yugoslavia. The most prominent uses of U.S. military force in the Balkans were:

1. Bosnia and Herzegovina (1995): The U.S. led NATO bombings against Bosnian Serb forces during Operation Deliberate Force, which was aimed at ending the Bosnian War by pressuring the Bosnian Serbs to agree to a ceasefire. This eventually led to the Dayton Accords, which ended the war in Bosnia.

2. Kosovo (1999): During the Kosovo War, NATO, with the U.S. as a major participant, launched an air campaign named Operation Allied Force against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to stop the humanitarian disaster occurring as a result of the violent crackdown by Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević's forces against ethnic Albanians in the province of Kosovo. The campaign led to a withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo and the establishment of a UN-administered interim civilian mission.

The use of U.S. military in the Balkans was seen as a necessary action to stop widespread atrocities, including ethnic cleansing and genocide, and to prevent further destabilization, which could have had wider implications for European security.