Although IFOR successfully carried out the military tasks outlined in the Dayton agreement, the continued need for an external military presence to provide a secure environment in Bosnia led NATO to replace IFOR with a smaller Stabilization Force (SFOR, initially with about 32,000 troops) in December 1996. Over a six-month period in 2007, EUFOR was downsized and restructured. At its June 28-29 Istanbul summit, NATO nations confirmed the decision to conclude SFOR by the end of 2004 and agreed that NATO's residual military presence would have the "principal task" of providing advice on defense reforms and would also "undertake certain operational supporting tasks, such as counter-terrorism...; supporting the ICTY...with regard to the detention of persons indicted for war crimes; and intelligence sharing with the EU." At a ceremony in Sarajevo on December 2, NATO formally concluded the SFOR mission and the EU launched Operation Althea . The EU on February 27, 2007, confirmed an earlier decision in principle to reconfigure EUFOR and reduce its size from 6,500 to 2,500 troops by the end of May. On November 21, the U.N. Security Council passed Resolution 1785 that further extended EUFOR's and NATO's mandates in Bosnia for another year.
On December 2, 2004, NATO formally concluded its Stabilization Force (SFOR) mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina and handed over peace stabilization duties to a European Union force (EUFOR). The mission of the EU's Operation Althea has been to ensure continued compliance with the 1995 Dayton peace agreement and contribute to a secure environment and Bosnia's efforts towards European integration. In 2007, the EU carried out a reconfiguration of EUFOR that reduced its strength from 6,500 to around 2,500 troops. NATO retains a small headquarters presence in Sarajevo to provide advice on defense reforms and to support counterterrorism efforts and the apprehension of wanted war crimes suspects believed to be hiding in or transiting through Bosnia. In November 2007, the U.N. Security Council extended the EU and NATO mandates in Bosnia for another year. This report will no longer be updated. See also CRS Report RS22324, Bosnia: Overview of Current Issues, by [author name scrubbed].