page_title: Siege of Dubrovnik
section_title: JNA advance
hierarchical_section_title: Siege of Dubrovnik / Timeline / JNA advance
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of Yugoslav People's Army offensive around Dubrovnik, Croatia October 1991 - April 1992. Balkan Battlegrounds Map 16
context_page_description: The Siege of Dubrovnik was a military engagement fought between the Yugoslav People's Army and Croatian forces defending the city of Dubrovnik and its surroundings during the Croatian War of Independence. The JNA started its advance on 1 October 1991, and by late October, it had captured virtually all the land between the Pelješac and Prevlaka peninsulas on the coast of the Adriatic Sea, with the exception of Dubrovnik itself. The siege was accompanied by a Yugoslav Navy blockade. The JNA's bombardment of Dubrovnik, including that of the Old Town—a UNESCO World Heritage Site—culminated on 6 December 1991. The bombardment provoked international condemnation, and became a public relations disaster for Serbia and Montenegro, contributing to their diplomatic and economic isolation, as well as the international recognition of Croatia's independence. In May 1992, the JNA retreated to Bosnia and Herzegovina, less than 1 kilometre from the coast in some places, and handed over its equipment to the newly formed Army of Republika Srpska.
context_section_description: On 1 October, the JNA started its offensive towards Dubrovnik, moving the 2nd Titograd Corps west through the Popovo field north of the city. The JNA 2nd Corps destroyed the village of Ravno before turning south towards Dubrovačko Primorje area, aiming to envelop Dubrovnik from the west. The second axis of the JNA advance was assigned to the 9th Boka Kotorska VPS. It originated in the Bay of Kotor about 35 kilometres (22 miles) south-east of Dubrovnik and was directed through Konavle. The advance started at 5 am after preparatory artillery fire against Vitaljina and other targets in Konavle. The advance, using several roads in the region, was supported by the Yugoslav Navy and the Air Force. Croatian defences were nonexistent in Konavle and light in Dubrovačko Primorje—the only JNA casualties of the day occurred during a successful ZNG ambush in Čepikuće village. On the first day of the offensive, JNA artillery attacked Srđ Hill and the Žarkovica promontory just to the north and east of Dubrovnik, while Yugoslav Air Force MiG-21s raided Komolac in Rijeka Dubrovačka to the west, destroying supplies of electricity and water to Dubrovnik. Until the end of December, Dubrovnik relied on fresh water supplied by boats and electricity from a few electric generators.
  Over the next three days, the JNA made slow progress. Its artillery attacked Srđ Hill, the Fort Imperial and Žarkovica on 2 October. The next day, the JNA shelled Dubrovnik's Belvedere Hotel, where a ZNG defence post was located, and the Yugoslav Air Force bombarded the city's Argentina Hotel. On 4 October, the JNA 2nd Corps captured Slano in Dubrovačko Primorje, interdicting the Adriatic Highway there and isolating Dubrovnik from the rest of Croatia. On 5 October, the Ploče district of Dubrovnik was shelled, followed by a Yugoslav Air Force strike on the Fort Imperial the next day.
  On 15 October, Croatia offered peace talks to Montenegro, but the President of Serbia Slobodan Milošević dismissed the offer. The offer was made to the Montenegrin officials because the offensive was first officially endorsed by the Montenegrin government on 1 October. Three days later, Serbia publicly distanced itself from the move, blaming Croatia for provoking the JNA. On the seventh day of the offensive, the Montenegrin parliament blamed the JNA for the attack. On 16 October—a day after Milošević declined the Croatian offer—the JNA 9th Boka Kotorska VPS force captured Cavtat. The capture of Cavtat was supported by an amphibious landing operation approximately 5 kilometres (3.1 miles) east of Dubrovnik and an airstrike on Ploče district of Dubrovnik on 18 October. The following day, a ceasefire was agreed but it was violated as soon as it came into effect. On 20 October, the Yugoslav Air Force attacked Dubrovnik and on 22 October, the Yugoslav Navy bombarded hotels housing refugees in the Lapad area of the city.
  On 23 October, the JNA started a sustained artillery bombardment of Dubrovnik, including the Old Town within the city walls, drawing a protest from the United States Department of State the next day. The JNA 9th VPS captured Župa Dubrovačka and Brgat on 24 October, while the Yugoslav Navy bombarded Lokrum Island. The next day, the JNA issued an ultimatum to the city, demanding its surrender and the removal of elected officials from Dubrovnik. On 26 October, the JNA captured the Žarkovica promontory 2.3 kilometres (1.4 miles) south-east from the city centre, and took most of the high ground overlooking Dubrovnik by 27 October. The JNA 2nd Corps south-western drive towards Dubrovnik was slower. It destroyed a large portion of the Trsteno Arboretum. The JNA advance displaced about 15,000 refugees from the areas it captured. About 7,000 people were evacuated from Dubrovnik by sea in October; the rest took refuge in hotels and elsewhere in the city.
caption: Map of the JNA advance to Dubrovnik in 1991
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