Germany has offered to order the new rapid reaction capability as early as 2025? True or false
(B2) European art is to paint over an old decision, and above all to highlight its European role. Montrism is widely practiced in Europe. It is even a competitive sport. France is one of the professionals. But Germany is not doing too badly either.
Vibrant Germany
Witness, the statement of the German Minister of Defense, Christine Lambrecht, when he joined the council of the ministers of the European Union, Monday (March 23): Today, I am going to propose to my EU colleagues that the military hard core of the Rapid Reaction Capability can be provided by Germany for one year in 2025. This is our proposal (...). “Idea taken up by certain media without really commenting on it, nor verifying it. At B2, this statement made us jump a little...
A promise that does not cost much, since it has already been made!
In fact, it was already planned, and for a long time.
The battle groups (battlegroups in French) are a notable part of the Capability. If the latter is deployed, there is a good chance that the battle groups are too. And in a schedule drawn up in December 2019 (two and a half years ago!), Germany had already offered to place part of its troops on call for the whole of 2025 (1st and 2nd semester). The excerpt from the painting testifies to this.
The first column mentions the semester concerned (1 and 2).
The second column the participating states: "DE" for Germany, first in the list, which means that the Germans are the leaders of the group. They will form a battle group with the Austrians (AT) and the Croats (HR). The asterisk means " subject to official government confirmation “, because in general it requires the approval of the government and Parliament, which is logical for programming six years in advance.
The third column notes the framework nation of the battle group : Germany. Being a framework nation means not only offering the heart of the device and the command, but being ready to fill the gaps if necessary.
In the third and final column, there is no designated headquarters. But beforehand at the time we would have spoken of Potsdam in Germany.
A common idea...
We should also specify that this Rapid Reaction Capability is not the work of Germany alone, but a common decision taken by the 27 and included from the start in what is called the Strategic Compass, a kind of strategy for the security and defense of the European Union (read: The new rapid reaction capability. Composition, decision, financing…(sheet)) and defended by the High Representative of the EU, Josep Borrell, and his team, against all odds.
... Initiated by the European quartet
To be exact, and to take up the subject at the genesis, this idea was initially called " European First Entry Force ". It was presented by 14 countries at the initiative of the quartet (France, Germany, Spain, Italy) and taken over by the High Representative to be incorporated into the first version of the Compass.
Learn to read between the lines
To be complete, it is said that this idea of " first entry » was mainly carried by France and Spain. Very quickly, it was (a little) watered down and above all renamed in favor of a " Capacity »From« quick reaction ", including the former battle groups. A revised name which has made it possible to integrate all the Member States, and above all the Visegrad and other Atlanticist countries, not really ready to create a " Strength ". An integrative vision supported... by Germany. Christine Lambrecht is therefore not entirely wrong on this point. But you have to know how to read between the lines.
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde, with Aurélie Pugnet)
- A phrase repeated in a dispatch from Reuters, and by several media (Euractiv, etc.) without really checking elsewhere.
