The city of Dayton continues celebrating the 30 year anniversary of the Dayton Peace Accords.
On Nov. 1, 1995, leaders from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia gathered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base to create a cease fire agreement ending the Bosnian war.
The final version was ultimately signed on Dec. 14 in Paris.
On the morning of Nov. 14, 2025, at the corner of Salem and Riverview Avenues, a group laid a wreath inside the Holbrooke Memorial Plaza. They commemorated the man for whom this space is named, Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke.
According to his son, David, the ambassador was instrumental in making the Dayton Peace Accords an international success in part because he advocated for talks to be held in the Gem City.
"He chose Dayton because it was off the beaten path, because he knew that to bring the Balkan presidents here and kind of isolate them, there was nothing going on, and it stressed, 'we're here to do this and just this,'" Holbrooke said.
"I think the other part of why 'Dayton', it's historical, the Wright brothers and there is a real important part of American history that went down here, and my father wanted these people to understand it," he said.
The Dayton Peace Accords Anniversary Committee is sponsoring several other events to commemorate these historic talks.
On Nov. 15, the group will host a gala at the Hope Hotel & Richard C. Holbrooke Conference Center. During this event, U.S. Ambassador R. Nicholas Burns will receive the Dayton Peace Prize. He is ambassador to China.
