[3] Outlined by the EUPM, the new Bosnian Police force would have the responsibility of fighting migrant smuggling, customs evasions as well as dealing with the tensions raised by the return of refugees.
[1] Since January 1, 2003, the European Union assigned the EUPM the role of creating the new stable police force for Bosnia and Herzegovina, in order to stabilise the region and remove some of the burden shouldered by the peace missions of the United Nations.
The EUPM laid out three main objectives, to support the fight against organised crime, support police reforms and watch over police actions that are "unlawful, misconducts and contrary to the best practice or generally applied rules of engagement"[4] The first aim led to EUPM's funding for the Bosnian State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), as well as developing the Ministry of Security (MoS) and the State Border Service (SBS).
[4] The EUPM also funds a number of public information campaigns, primarily targeted at reducing road deaths and drug use in the population.
An EUPM spokesperson illustrated this when stating that "In Sarajevo if a crime is committed on the streets that are part of one of the entities, the Federation, and the criminal drives four, five kilometres outside the centre, he crosses the boundary line into Republika Srpska,"[9] A British police officer working with EUPM also highlighted the dangers of a low-performing police force in Bosnia: "It's in a very vulnerable position geographically, in terms of drug producing countries, in terms of trafficking things like drugs and people that find their way into western Europe,"[9]