EUTM Mali. British and Irish together in Bamako. A gesture of normalization (Shift2)

(BRUSSELS2) European operations are also the moment to symbolize rapprochements between countries which, until recently, were at loggerheads. The EUTM Mali mission does not fail in this tradition.

A British and Irish detachment

Irish Defense Minister Alan Shatter announced this earlier (February 13) during his press conference concluding the informal meeting of Defense Ministers in Dublin. The United Kingdom and Ireland will provide a combined “infantry” team for the training of Malian soldiers. A contribution quite similar to that provided to EUTM Somalia which saw Irish and Maltese working together. But with high symbolic value.

Another step in normalization

The inclusion of British and Irish in the same contingent has, in fact, a high political value. We can see this less on the continent. But it's a reality. “ Irish and UK forces have often worked together in different theaters of operations, on UN peacekeeping operations, led by the NATO EU, such as in the Balkans and Afghanistan. . But it will be the first time that a joint UK/Ireland contingent has been deployed on an operation confirmed the Irish Minister. " This is another step in the normalization of relations between our two countries – following the Queen's visit to Dublin Castle (in May 2011). A historic milestone and a tangible manifestation of the very positive relationship and mutual respect that now exists between our countries. » he added.

Comment: Perhaps, between London and Dublin, these are the beginnings of what the Franco-German brigade was for Paris and Berlin. The British elements will in fact come from Royal Irish Regiment, accustomed to external deployments, more precisely from the 1st battalion as my colleague from the Irish Times explains. It is therefore not excluded that Northern Irish people come to serve in Mali, since the “Irish” is made up of the old Ulster Defense Regiment, and even from the South, since this regiment had the habit of recruiting from both sides of the border. This would then have a double symbolic value. A commitment to peace sometimes hides another…

(Maj) British Regiment Details