Meeting of Defense Ministers on December 9: ask for the program!
The title is worth the detour in itself: “Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs – Defense formation”. Indeed, Defense Ministers will meet alone, without their Foreign Affairs colleagues, and in the presence of Lady Ashton. Another event in itself since the High Representative (HR) had, until now, been conspicuous by her absence during the informal meetings in Palma de Mallorca and Ghent. Defense ministers will therefore have a lot to say, especially since the HR has not shown a strong appetite for defense issues (see recently for the conference of ambassadors (1).
If the Council's menu remains fairly standard (capabilities, operations, European Defense Agency), many subjects on the agenda call for decisions.
It will first of all be an introduction with the Secretary General of NATO, AF Rasmussen, to discuss in particular EU-NATO cooperation which will undoubtedly have to be mentioned; without a spectacular rapprochement, we can however expect developments on the Afghan front (protection of Eupol by ISAF elements in particular).
The ministers will then debate the capabilities, with the German-Swedish paper (2) as a starting point, an initiative which is arousing interest. The question of battlegroups will also have to be raised with this problem which remains posed by this “hole” 2nd half of 2011 (3).
They will also have a session in “European Defense Agency” format with three main topics: the various projects of the Agency, the appointment of its director. The written procedure having been interrupted, there will therefore be a formal vote, but no other proposals have been put on the table. And, barring any surprises, the candidate of High Representative CF Arnould (4) could be endorsed. For the question of the budget, on the other hand, it remains open after the British veto (5).
The lunch will be dedicated to military operations with the presence of the three operation commanders: Buster (Eunavfor Atalanta Somalia), Bair (Eufor Althea Bosnia) and Gonzalez Ellul (Eutm Somalia). The discussion, again, should be nourished. Atalanta's mandate will be slightly modified (6) but above all the question of the treatment and prosecution of pirates will arise (7). For Bosnia, we are entering the phase of launching the new mission (and parallel reduction of the force mission). For the training mission for Somali soldiers in Uganda (Eutm Somalia) the question arises of extending the mission which should, at least, be considered now (8).
A whole series of subjects could also be discussed, officially, unofficially, at the table, as well as in the corridors... For example, the new organization of the diplomatic service and the place given to “defense” structures, the use of battlegroups in the face of certain threats (Ivory Coast or Sudan), etc.
Read also:
- (1) The defense dimension, the great forgotten of the conference of EU ambassadors
- (2) The Swedish-German paper: a very political initiative not to be scorned
- Germans and Swedes take the initiative
- (3) Battlegroup: Is there a volunteer in the room?
- (4) Small concern, Italian, for the appointment of the director of the Defense Agency
- (5) Will the defense agency budget increase? The British say "No"
- (6) Atalanta's mandate brought into line with judicial practice
- (7) An eagerly awaited stop
- (8) Renewing the EUTM Somalia mission, the question arises
