The 1st Separate Airborne Brigade (Russian: 1-я отдельная воздушно-десантная бригада, 1ОВДБр), also referred to in English as the 1st Russian Separate Airborne Brigade (1 RSAB), was a Russian Airborne Forces unit that existed from 1996 to 2003 and was Russia's contribution to the NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Implementation Force (IFOR), later renamed the Stabilization Force (SFOR).

The brigade was put together in the fall of 1995 from elements of the 76th and 98th Guards Airborne Divisions, and it arrived at the Tuzla Air Base in Bosnia and Herzegovina in January 1996, just after being officially activated. Its efforts were directed at separating the warring factions from each other, clearing mines, and creating safe conditions for the civilian population and international humanitarian organizations. The Russian brigade was the largest force from any non-NATO country involved in the peacekeeping mission.

The participation of the brigade in the peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina was the first time Russian troops took part in a NATO-led operation. They operated under a unique system of command, being led on the ground by the U.S. 1st Armored Division commander, as they were in the American area of responsibility, and were under the operational direction of the NATO supreme commander in Europe through his deputy for Russian forces, a Russian general. This way the brigade was subordinated to the NATO supreme commander while still being under Russian national authority.

The mission was considered to be a success by both sides, with the Russian brigade having contributed to the achievement of its military objectives, and according to U.S. General George Joulwan the development of the Russian–NATO relationship in that process created the basis for the signing of the NATO-Russia Founding Act in May 1997. The only serious disruption to the command structure occurred during the Kosovo War in 1999, but relations between NATO and the Russian military were restored after that, and elements of the 1st Airborne Brigade remained in Bosnia until 2003, though it was significantly downsized starting after 1999.

After negotiations began in Dayton, Ohio, in the fall of 1995 between the leaders of the factions involved in the Bosnian War, the United States wanted Russia to take part in ensuring that the resulting Dayton Agreement was followed by all sides, with Russian troops to serve in a NATO peacekeeping mission, the Implementation Force (IFOR). There were tensions between NATO and Russia after the alliance's airstrikes against the Bosnian Serb forces earlier that year, but Russian president Boris Yeltsin agreed that Russia should participate, and negotiations between Russian defense minister Pavel Grachev and U.S. defense secretary William J. Perry decided on how this would happen. On 8 November 1995 they determined that a Russian brigade of two or three infantry battalions would be deployed as part of the peacekeeping force. However, there was continued disagreement about the exact command structure for the mission, because the Russian government was reluctant to have its troops under the command of NATO. The Russians initially considered their troops to be under U.S. command, not NATO, but they were going to take part in a NATO mission and the American general in charge of it was acting in his capacity as the NATO supreme commander.

The exact framework for the mission was worked out between NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), U.S. General George Joulwan, and a Russian General Staff delegation led by Colonel General Leonty Shevtsov. They determined that the NATO supreme commander would have operational control over the brigade through Shevtsov, who was given a new position at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) as the SACEUR's deputy for Russian Forces. On the ground in Bosnia, the brigade would be working with the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division, and its commander Major General William L. Nash would have tactical control over the Russian unit. Both the U.S. and Russian forces were part of the Multi-National Division North.

In November and December 1995 the 1st Separate Airborne Brigade was put together from elements of the 76th and 98th Guards Airborne Divisions of the Russian Airborne Forces (VDV), and was officially activated on 5 January 1996. At the start it had about 1,340 paratroopers, though other sources give it a strength of 1,500 or 1,600 men, along with 116 vehicles and eight artillery pieces. Its equipment included BMD-1, BMD-2, BTR-D, and BTR-80 armored vehicles, 2S9 self-propelled mortar, and Ural trucks. The troops of the brigade received higher pay than regular soldiers and had been given specific training. One source estimated that 40 percent of them were combat veterans, having seen action in the Soviet-Afghan and/or the First Chechen War.

Starting on 12 January 1996, the first elements of the brigade arrived at Tuzla Air Base in northeast Bosnia and Herzegovina, the American area of responsibility. The brigade was commanded by Colonel Alexander Lentsov. They began their work in early February, which involved patrolling their area and manning 12 checkpoints. Their sector was located in the Posavina corridor, near the Serbia–Bosnia and Herzegovina border, and included a 75-kilometer section of the internal boundary between the Bosnian Serb Republic and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The brigade was organized into the 1st and 2nd Airborne Battalions, each of them being responsible for a certain part of the boundary. They were tasked with making sure that the warring sides stayed away from each other.