Laura Heckmann
Red blotches sunk into the pavement along the sidewalks of Sarajevo could be mistaken for an urban art project, scattered about the city in seemingly random places. But the red resin-filled indentations in the concrete mark a far more sobering reality: gashes left from mortar fire.
The memorials — called Sarajevo roses — are some of many scars left from a war that ended during the lifetime of many who still inhabit the city. Today, a thriving old town district lined with cobblestones, a serene riverwalk and quaint houses stacked up hillsides mask the not-so-distant history of violence while simultaneously serving as a testament to a lesser-known relationship of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization: its partners.
Bosnia and Herzegovina — a member of NATO’s Partnership for Peace program since 2006 — was host to the alliance’s annual Military Strategic Partnership Conference in April — a forum aimed at furthering NATO processes and programs for nonmembers. Since the release of NATO’s 2022 Strategic Concept — finalized after Russia invaded Ukraine — NATO has placed greater emphasis on working with sympathetic nations in regions like Eastern Europe or the Indo-Pacific where threats to the alliance’s interests are growing.
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