The NATO-led Stabilisation Force (SFOR) is "concerned with the quantity and quality of ammunition held in the country," Captain Julian Gumley, an ammunition expert with SFOR, told a press conference.

SFOR and Bosnia's two armed forces are developing plans to scale back the number of ammunition storage sites from 160 to fewer than 10 in order "to reduce the threat posed by unsafe and improperly stored ammunition," he added.

The remaining sites would be designed in line with NATO safety standards.

Gumley warned that Bosnia's stockpiles in small arms and other ammunition were sufficient to supply weaponry for dozens of years.

During regular weapons site inspections SFOR also found some ammunition to be of poor quality, or unnecessary, such as sea mines in a country that has a mere 10 kilometers (six miles) of Adriatic coastline and no navy.

Such ammunition would also be destroyed.

Most of the ammunition dates from the bloody 1992-95 war in Bosnia, while some is left over from World War II.

Bosnia's two entities -- the Republika Srpska and the Muslim-Croat Federation -- which were formed after the 1992-95 war each have their own army under separate chains of command.

The 12,000-strong SFOR was deployed in Bosnia to maintain security and supervise local military structures following the country's war.

NATO-led peacekeepers have seized large amounts of illegally-held weapons and ammunition left over from the country's war since the start of 2003.

WAR.WIRE