It is 10 years since the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords that ended the war in Bosnia.

Key players gathering in Paris chose the anniversary to name Bosnia's new international peace envoy.

Former German cabinet minister Christian Schwarz-Schilling will replace British diplomat Paddy Ashdown.

The powers of the post are expected to shrink in the coming years as Bosnia's Serb and Muslim Croat entities improve cooperation under Western guidance.

The Dayton accord was signed on November 21, 1995, after weeks of negotiations at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

The US-brokered agreement, which ended Bosnia's war between Muslims, Serbs and Croats, was officially signed in Paris on December 14 that year.

It split Bosnia into two entities - the Federation of Bosnia Herzegovina, or Muslim Croat Federation, and the Serb Republic - each with its own parliament, president and government.

However deep divisions remained after the war ended and resentment lingered over the perceived failure of some of the Dayton agreement's key provisions.

Barely half of refugees returned home - the rest fearing reprisals - while leading war criminals are still on the run.

Since 2002 Britain's Paddy Ashdown has been the UN representative responsible for overseeing the work of Bosnia's collective presidency.

Despite ongoing problems such as corruption, he believes Bosnia could eventually be in a position to join the European Union.

PHOTO CAPTION

A German former minister, Christian Schwarz-Schilling. (AFP)