The first budget of the diplomatic service = 8 hours of the French budget, 3 Rafale!
(BRUSSELS2) Less than half a billion euros, this is what the future diplomatic service of the EU weighs. This seems significant in raw numbers. Compared to the whole of Europe's budget or GDP, this is … small, very small.
3 or 4 Rafale or 3 Eurofighter
The first budget of the EEAS, presented to the European Parliament, amounts, in fact, to very exactly 475,8 million euros, distributed approximately 1/3 for the headquarters and 2/3 for the delegations (respectively 185 and 291 millions of euros).
The operation of the diplomatic service (salaries, charges, buildings) thus represents 0,2% of the European budget (143 billion) or 8 hours of the French State budget. This is not even the cost of the tax shield in France. This is the unit price of 3 or 4 Rafale or 3 Eurofighter (purchase price + development cost (1)...
We cannot really say that the European diplomatic “machine” is expensive! And when we talk about the low weight of Europe in the world, this is, perhaps, also an explanation (to compare: the operating budget of the American State Department amounts for 2011 to 12,3 billion $ or around 9 billion euros).
Staff: less than half of the budget
Staff remuneration represents half of the budget: 212 million euros. The 2010 budget had already been modified, to the tune of 9,5 million euros, to cover the first wave of recruitment: hiring of 100 diplomats (20 at headquarters, 80 in the delegations) as well as 70 support staff ( 10 contract workers in Brussels and 60 local agents in the delegations). The 2011 budget also contains the creation of 18 new posts at headquarters (2 million euros in 2011) as well as the increase in security costs (3,275 million euros).
The rest of the expenses and income comes mainly from transfers from the budget of the European Commission and the Council of the EU which transfer personnel, equipment and buildings, and financial allocation allowing the diplomatic service to operate (see tables).
Staff transfers (chart)
| Commission | EU Council | New positions 2010 | New positions 1/2011 | Total | |
| Head office | 675 | 386 | 20 | 18 | 1 099 |
| Delegations | 439 | 25 | 80 | 544 | |
| Total | 1 114 | 411 | 100 | 18 | 1 643 |
Source: European Commission
Transfer of buildings
The buildings from which the diplomatic service inherited are, on the Commission side: the Charlemagne, 56 Rue de la Loi 56', '15 Rue de la Science' - as well as the buildings of the European Commission's delegations around the world; and on the Council side, ''Rue Froissart'' (which houses the special representatives), ''Kortenbergh'' (which houses the Military Staff), 'Ecole Royale Militaire' (which houses the EU military committee), as well as the "UN liaison offices" in New York and Geneva. No budget is foreseen for new premises at the headquarters except for a small amount of 500.000 euros to cover new recruitments.
Administrative budget = 193 million euros (chart)
| Commission | Council | New | New 2011 | TOTAL | |
| Other personnel expenses (training, medical, missions, etc.) | 29,6 | 5,0 | 1,3 | 0,3 | 36,2 |
| Buildings, IT and others | 118,9 | 26,6 | 8,1 | 3,7 | 157,3 |
| Of which: - Buildings | 91,2 | 12,1 | 6,0 | 3,4 | 112,7 |
| Of which -IT and others | 27,7 | 14,5 | 2,1 | 0,3 | 44,6 |
| TOTAL | 148,5 | 31,6 | 9,4 | 4,0 | 193,5 |
Source: European Commission
(1) According to the Court of Auditors, the unit price of the Rafale, as it appears in the report of the Court of Auditors 2010, is 140 million euros. That is a price slightly higher than that displayed by the export manufacturer.
Download the summary budget table
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)
We get what we deserve. If the EEAS has opted for a pure and simple renewal of RELEX and the Commission delegations, as the first rotation of EU “ambassadors” seems to indicate, their additional funding needs should be extremely limits. low ambitions, low means...