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New CSDP Missions: Cathy's Line

(BRUSSELS2) We had the intuition. Officials and diplomats confirmed it half-wordly or more emphatically. It is now official, or almost. A senior official of the diplomatic service has just summed up today, in front of a few journalists, before the Council of Defense Ministers, the official line of the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. " Cathy's line - he explained - it is not to have new missions until we have solved the problems of the current missions, such as in Kosovo or in Georgia, which are understaffed ».

  • NB: In Kosovo, the EUlex mission sees the Member States withdrawing, one by one, their personnel from the law enforcement police forces. And in Georgia, some countries have withdrawn some elements, in particular the French. Explanation on the French side: “ France needs its gendarmes elsewhere. It is not illogical. This mission is still useful today. But we are no longer in the same political movement as in 2008. If States want to take over, and they consider the mission essential, they should put a little more... ".

Be careful not to seize the machine

Financial constraints essentially justify this position. But not only. This "unofficial" line from Cathy confirms the comments of several diplomats around the Council table who had the impression that the various arguments put forward and prior to the launch of new missions (Libya, Sahel, etc.) by the European diplomatic service hold more to this (non) will. " We are currently in a Malthusian logic, like 'the planet has several billion inhabitants, it's serious, let's stop having children' says a diplomat. There is, however, a danger in leaving the CSDP instrument in the garage. When one day we will need the instrument, there is a risk that we will no longer be able to do a mission. Because quite simply we will no longer have the experience. The important thing today is not to seize up the machine”.

OpsCenter: in search of efficiency

Same principle for the OpsCenter - the military operations command center. The senior officer confirms that the " High Representative no longer wants to discuss these ideological questions but focus on efficiency ". What about what it could offer in terms of efficiency? Our interlocutor will say no more... Mystery. It is certain that if there are no new missions, there is no need for a reinforced OHQ.

Comment: The position - of seeking efficiency - is justifiable in theory, in a beautiful living room, all with embroidered tablecloths. But, unfortunately, in reality it is different. The PesDC is not made of communicating vessels. And one means does not replace another. It is therefore not by suppressing a mission that we will have more resources elsewhere. It is not thus by not deploying a small mission in the Sahel, that we will have one more frigate for Eunavfor Atalanta, or a company of CRS or mobile gendarmes in Kosovo. It is more a question of will, and of the political priorities of the Member States. Moreover, there is in politics, and even more so in defense operations, a major effect: that of training. An active state leads to a more reluctant one. And so a mission is set up, without necessarily taking elsewhere. A country that is absolutely committed to a mission will also be more ready to give a helping hand to another in a kind of give and take. And, conversely, a State which has decided for various reasons to withdraw its troops, it will do so, new mission or not. The CSDP and Europe - as we well know - is like riding a bicycle, if we stop, we risk fall. By sticking to this line, which stems from ignorance, there would never have been any other missions. For years, and even now, the EUPOL Afghanistan mission has suffered from understaffing, States reluctant to commit (and individuals too). This did not prevent Member States from committing, sometimes massively and decisively, successively to several EUMM Georgia, EUNAVFOR Atalanta, EUTM Somalia and even EULEX Kosovo missions, to name but a few.

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Nicolas Gros Verheyde

Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).

3 thoughts on “New CSDP Missions: Cathy's Line"

  • Sylvester Stallone

    Santa Claus is already having trouble financing with his EFSF hood all the gifts to the ugly little over-indebted states... He would have a lot of trouble convincing his Chinese cousin to help him finance organized trips, some of which are essentially intended to cut him off. grass underfoot.....
    In these times, it is better to stay covered by more robust insurance!
    Starting by staying quietly at the bottom of his cottage and making sure that the fire in the fireplace does not end up igniting the house!

    The Anglo-Olympic year 2012 will definitely not be that of the revival of the European flame!

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