Informal defence: the “in” and the “out”

(BRUSSELS2) An informal meeting of Defense Ministers is a discussion and a hands-on battle in the room, declarations and little phrases in the corridors; the subjects on the agenda and those which are not (1)...

Topics on the agenda

Waiting for Cathy! While the aperitif is being served and the Ministers listen to the Mayor of Ghent and Herman Van Rompuy welcoming them, while the latecomers join the others in the room of the Town Hall which is reserved for them (Hervé Morin is one of the last), in New York, the High Representative, Cathy Ashton heads for the videoconference room. She will wait, all alone, in front of the screen, some 10 minutes before all the Ministers join the room. To say that she was happy would be a big word... Her closed face says it all. But I won't bet a euro that this delay isn't quite wanted on the part of defense ministers whom she has not, for the moment, really succeeded in convincing of the relevance of her action as High representative.

Budget, savings, cuts. It's a leitmotif that came back in the mouths of all the participants. As Cathy Ashton summarized in her introductory remarks to the Ministers' dinner: " There is currently enormous pressure on public budgets. there is a clear demand for the EU to act. "This rekindles the debate on the need to strengthen cooperation between the EU and NATO," said Alexander Vondra (1).

An analysis of budget cuts. Gerald Howarth (United Kingdom) stresses that it would be good to analyze the effect that the various budget cuts undertaken in European countries will have on the equipment and capacities of the Member States. Is it within the framework of NATO or the EU. Several delegations lean in the latter direction asking the chairman of the meeting to seize the High Representative of the question. With humour, Pieter de Crem (Belgium) declares: “ Well then I'm going to have to write, again, a letter to Cathy ».

Strengthen the European Defense Agency. This has been an antiphon of several ministers, as Jyri Häkämies (Finland) pointed out, " the Defense Agency must be strengthened: 30 million for the budget is not enough. When we invest in the agency, we invest in the future, we also need a permanent operations center ". “The Agency must be given a more important role,” adds Bogdan Klich (Poland). The only frank opposition: that of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence, Gerald Howarth (United Kingdom), who repeatedly expressed during the session a more than traditional British position — " cooperation, yes to NATO —, backed up covertly by the Czech minister (see below). It must be said that Howarth, a former pilot in the RAF reserve, is an old-school Tory, a Thatcherite at heart, a supporter of the intervention in Vietnam and of apartheid in South Africa.

Europe a Sino-American protectorate. Herve Morin: “At the rate we are at, Europe is gradually becoming a protectorate, and in 50 years we will become the game of the balance of new powers and we will be under a Sino-American condominium ". Read also here. Which apparently does not bother some ministers. " We are not building a European defense policy against the United States. How can we explain to our fellow citizens that we are building a capacity against the United States,” says Alexandr Vondra.

 

The three circles of competence. For Zu Gutenberg (Germany), we can draw up three circles of competence: “ those that are needed at the national level; second, those in which cooperation could generate savings; third, those that are needed only in a few countries, with their partners available when needed ". An analysis identical to that made by Hervé Morin (France). It now remains to be seen whether we put the same thing in Paris and Berlin in the three circles.

Cooperation topics : there are several of them. But often come back research, training, helicopters and strategic airlift capabilities (as quoted by the Austrian Darabos). We could also add protection against nuclear, biological and chemical weapons (as proposed by the Czechs supported by the Germans) or the detection of IEDs (mentioned in particular by the British and German ministers. NB: a program already started at the European Defense Agency) or maintenance (mentioned by the French and British ministers). The Finnish minister, maritime safety - like what is done in the Baltic between Swedes and Finns - is a " good example of a possible sector of cooperation, all the more interesting in that it also has civil implications ».

Cooperation issues. " In pooling, you have to know who owns who controls explains Gerald Howarth (United Kingdom). " National limits must be taken into account says Zu Gutenberg (Germany). Sometimes it doesn't work as expected, "in the helicopter modernization project," the experience is not positive ” retains Alexandr Vondra (Czech Rep.).

European preference. The director of the European Defense Agency, Alexander Weis, talks about opening up the market. “A good contribution to the technological and defense industrial base would be the transposition of the two Defense directives” specifies Karel Kovanda (European Commission). Sten Tolgfors (Sweden) agrees: “ having a single market rather than 27 small markets would be more efficient ". But Hervé Morin (France) nuance: yes we must open but, in this case, let's create a European market, that Europeans buy Europeans”. Several ministers reply: we have budget constraints, we buy the cheapest (and what is available)”. Klich (Poland) explains: “ I disagree, you compete with the Americans».

Better cooperate, if necessary at the regional level. Csaba Ende, Hungarian Minister of Defence: "What we are looking for (with the other countries of the East is cooperation" narrower, deeper ". Hungary will organize a first seminar at the beginning of October on the means of strengthening cooperation with its neighbors in Eastern Europe, followed by a seminar, under its chairmanship, on permanent structured cooperation (in February).

EU-NATO cooperation. Mentioned several times by several interlocutors, starting with Cathy Ashton, the operational cooperation between the two organizations comes up against (everyone knows it even if they do not want to say it) the dispute between Cyprus and Turkey. To the point that the Cypriot minister feels compelled to recall his position: “ the EU is made up of 27 member states, not 26 ". And without naming Turkey by name, he mentions: “ A member of NATO does not have a constructive position to solve this problem. »

Topics that weren't on the menu and weren't discussed...

Afghanistan. It was not on the meeting menu. But several ministers have mentioned it. Others have announced reinforcements... or not. The Czech Vondra thus announced that his country would send “ from 170 to 180 more soldiers », in addition to the 550 already on site. After, " from 2012, this number will decrease he announced. On the other hand, the German Zu Gutenberg announced that he would not send 350 reinforcements as requested by NATO. It will be 90 instructors. And not one more. And again, it will replace the 90 personnel serving the Tornado that he will withdraw. No question of crossing the limit of 5000 men and women set by the Bundestag.

The head of the European Defense Agency. Officially there was no question. But then not at all. Finally, several candidates were present and led a discreet but active campaign, such as Arto Koski, the Finn, number 2 in the Ministry of Defence. It's the " best candidate Häkämies told me.

Permanent structured cooperation. Another subject that "has not been addressed". And fortunately because there is like a gap between the French vision of Hervé Morin — “If it's to belong to a club, I'm not sure it necessarily leads very far. If it is the grouping of countries that have this ambition to be a vanguard, then yes, it has an interest” — and that of the Belgian Pieter de Crem — “ Permanent structured cooperation must be extended. Large and small countries are all faced with the same problems. We want a one-speed defense policy, not a multi-speed one”. That was before the meeting. Because afterwards... the Belgian minister was more circumspect. “For the CSP, we are still looking for content”.

The European army. The final word to the Austrian Minister, Norbert Darabos, interviewed by my colleague from Austrian television. "A European army is as realistic as the abolition of celibacy by the Catholic Church"...

(1) What he is slightly wrong in my opinion. It is the duplications in the defense budgets of the Member States above all that pose a problem.

Other articles published on Informal Defense of Ghent:

• Use battlegroups in the event of a disaster?
• The “Ghent framework”
• Hervé Morin: "Europe is becoming a protectorate"
• A dinner, at 27, very political but without concrete
• Alexander Weis' Final Tip: A Little Competition Wouldn't Hurt
• For Carme Chacon, the "top priority" is the prosecution of pirates
• Conversation with Herman Van R.
• The questions put to the 27 at the informal defense of Ghent
• Informal defense of Ghent: a meeting focused on capabilities

(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)