Brussels, 20/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - During the evening of Thursday 19 November, the European Council adopted conclusions on common security and defence policy (CSDP). As summed up by European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, the main objective is to get things moving with regard to defence capabilities, the defence industry and joint EU operations. That objective has been reached, according to European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who spoke of very ambitious conclusions. The heads of state and government did not make any substantial changes to the content of the conclusions (see EUROPE 10987) and the discussion was, according to Van Rompuy, quite open and generally consensual.
Underlining that there are new threats and that the “strategic landscape is changing fast”, the president of the European Council stressed that “our countries are expected to assume more responsibility in our wider region”. It is a matter, Van Rompuy said, of being “credible as Europeans on security”.
Europe “needs a strong, credible, common security and defence policy, so that Europe can play its full role on the world stage. This must be underpinned by a competitive and efficient security and defence sector”, said Barroso. He went on to add: “This is primarily a task for the EU member states, but the Commission can assist within its area of competences. In this sense, we have already tabled proposals to strengthen the internal market and the competitiveness of our defence industry”.
Speaking before the press, the French president, François Hollande, took the view that “Defence Europe is making headway”. Major steps have now been taken, he said, welcoming the fact that the European Council will be back again in 18 months to give the debate fresh momentum. As far as the day's “decisions” are concerned, he underlined at length the resolve to have capabilities, to be able to use the same equipment, the same weapons (…), and to avoid dissipation of effort and the duplication of competing material and equipment. Hence the importance of strengthening cooperation in order to develop joint capabilities - held by the states but not by Europe, he stressed - in particular in the field of remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), air-to-air refuelling, satellite communication and cyber-security.
While welcoming the efforts that the 28 EU member states are making towards more cooperation in the field of capabilities, German Chancellor Angela Merkel above all placed emphasis on the efforts that the Union must make in order to support its partners (regional organisations and third countries) in order to help them develop crisis management capabilities, whether through advice, training and education missions, on in the form of equipment.
Mariano Rajoy, the president of the Spanish government, insisted on the partnership with NATO and took a stance in favour of strengthening the Europe of defence and the necessary capabilities, on the basis of better industrial integration. He also underlined how important it was to develop a European maritime security strategy.
During his press conference, Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron said that “actions for peace enforcement and defence must be driven by the nations themselves on a voluntary basis, not by some Brussels diktat”. The main aim of the EU should be to develop the economy and growth and to create jobs, not to fantasise over the acquisition of defence equipment or of an army, he went on, explaining that he had had the references to EU capabilities or equipments removed. He also said he agreed with Hollande for working together in order to build capabilities and to do so bilaterally.
The president of the Italian Council, Enrico Letta took the view that greater integration in defence policies means less overlapping between the actions by the different member states and therefore, at the end of the day, savings in defence spending for each country taken individually. The only true way to save money in the long term is to integrate defence more and more at European level, he said, adding that savings may thus be made without endangering the security of European citizens. He went on to highlight the importance that his country attaches to adopting a maritime security strategy in the coming months. (JK/CG/FG/SP/LC/OJ/transl.jl)