Balkan spring

Bosnia: With ethnic tension and economic hardship lingering over post-war life, many wonder when a new season begins | Greg Dabel

SARAJEVO— When a Lufthansa flight enters Bosnian airspace, the German pilot maintains 9,000 feet until the last possible moment. Then he abruptly angles the commercial jet into a chilling nosedive straight into Sarajevo International Airport. Officially this landing approach is necessary to avoid tricky winds that swirl through the snowy mountain passes surrounding Sarajevo. But for veterans of the Balkans' long war, it's an eerie reminder of the combat landing patterns used to avoid rocket launchers and snipers once hidden in the hills.

It has been a full decade since peace treaties halted the war in Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia. U.S. Ambassador Douglas McElhaney declared, "Bosnia is at peace and will remain at peace," earlier this year at a 10th anniversary celebration. "The prospect of renewed hostilities is remote," he said.

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