First published 1999
Richard Holbrooke arrives in the Balkans in late 1995 carrying the weight of American foreign policy and a seemingly impossible mission. President Clinton has dispatched him as chief negotiator to end the brutal war tearing Bosnia apart. The odds stack heavily against success. The United Nations resists his approach. The Contact Group remains fractured. Washington voices argue against deeper involvement. Holbrooke faces tragedy immediately when three of his four team members die during their first attempt to reach Sarajevo. He pushes forward with his controversial strategy, believing only American leadership combined with aggressive diplomacy and the credible threat of force can bring peace. From Belgrade to Sarajevo, Zagreb to the pivotal negotiations at Dayton, Holbrooke cajoles, threatens, and bargains with world leaders and Balkan officials. This account reveals the internal American decision making process, the near collapse of early peace implementation, and the high stakes maneuvering that ultimately ended Europe's bloodiest conflict in fifty years.
Genres: history, 20th-century, political-science, war, non-fiction, biography-memoir, military-history, american-history
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, thought-provoking
Tropes: high-stakes, mission-impossible
Setting: Balkans, Belgrade, Bosnia, Dayton, Sarajevo, Zagreb
Period: 1995
464 pages · Paperback · Modern Library