Emmanuel Macron's “European Intervention Initiative”? Explanations

4th October, 20173th October, 2017 Nicolas Gros Verheyde

*Emmanuel Macron during his speech in the great amphitheater of the Sorbonne presents a new initiative for European defense (credit: Elysée)*

(B2) Everyone may have been surprised by the “European intervention initiative” mentioned by Emmanuel Macron in his speech at the Sorbonne on the future of Europe. An ambitious project...

“I am now proposing to try to build this common culture, by proposing a European intervention initiative aimed at developing this shared strategic culture. [...] At the beginning of the next decade, Europe will thus have to be provided with a common intervention force, a common defense budget and a common doctrine for action. »

This initiative seems out of nowhere and rather symbolic. Make no mistake about it, each word has its meaning... And that deserves some details and explanations, drawn from the best sources.

Firstly, we are indeed talking about Europe here, and not from the European Union. It is not a style clause but a political definition. This means that this project will be prepared with all the European partners “ who want and can as a diplomat told B2. This necessarily includes the British who could thus be part of this initiative and who share with the French a rather similar intervention doctrine (even if it is exercised on sometimes different grounds).

Second, it's not about reheating with existing or non-existing devices. It is therefore neither the famous battlegroups, the tactical groups of the European Union, which have never taken off, and which France seems to be mourning; nor the famous "European army", a sort of very convenient Arlesian, allowing not to talk about more concrete projects. It's... in between.

Third, it's a project for the future, by 2022-2024, and not for today. There is no question of the permanent structured cooperation – which should be launched at the end of the year or the beginning of 2018 – or of the European Defense Fund (the first element of which should see the light of day in 2018). This is something else, far more ambitious in operational terms.

Fourth, the preparation should start quickly. According to our information, the opening of the French armies to executives from other European armies should thus begin quickly. This opening would be, without common measure, with what is currently practiced. It is therefore not just a question of having liaison officers placed within the armies or of welcoming a few (sub)officers in schools or in the French forces. This initiative is on "another scale", with a "more intensive" presence of soldiers at all levels of an intervention: from planning (of operations) and support to operations, including anticipation and intelligence. . This means that we would find European soldiers at different levels and in all corps: at the DGSE (general directorate for external security) as well as at the CPCO (centre for planning and conduct of operations), in staff or in the service of the essences of the armies...

Fifthly, the intention is to change the mindset, to build a new military intervention doctrine, more European, where everyone takes into account other modes of intervention, to develop what Emmanuel Macron calls "a shared strategic culture". This could then lead just as much to changing the modes of intervention of the French armies as those of the others. The objective is thus during the next six years (2018-2024) to achieve this change which is as much "technical" as "psychological". It is a question of providing the Europeans with “a capacity for autonomous action of Europe, in addition to NATO”, which could be placed at the service of the European Union or... other organisations.

(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)