On Monday 18 February, the Council of the European Union approved a joint civil-military operation concept on the regionalisation of CSDP action in the Sahel.
In concrete terms, this should enable the EU to increase the effectiveness, at regional level, of the action of its EUCAP Sahel Mali, EUCAP Sahel Niger and EUTM Mali missions.
This decision follows a first phase of regionalisation of missions, decided by the Council in June 2017 (see EUROPE 11812).
During the second phase, the regional coordination cell, created during the first phase and established within EUCAP Sahel Mali, will be renamed the Regional Advisory and Coordination Cell (CCTCC) and will be strengthened. This command and control structure will be transferred from Bamako (Mali) to Nouakchott (Mauritania). In addition, the network of internal security and defence experts in the field of CSDP, integrated into the EU delegations to the five G5 Sahel countries (Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad and Mali), will be expanded.
"The unit will provide support, through strategic advice, to the structures and countries of the G5 Sahel, in synergy with programmes financed by the Commission and according to an integrated approach", the Council stated in its statement. The objective of the unit's actions is to strengthen the regional capabilities of the G5 Sahel and, where appropriate, its national capabilities, "and more particularly to support the operationalization of the military and police components of the G5 Sahel joint task force, with a view to facilitating and improving cross-border regional cooperation in the field of security and defence", the communiqué adds.
The EUCAP Sahel Niger and EUCAP Sahel Mali missions will be able to carry out specific and targeted strategic advisory and training activities in other G5 Sahel countries.
Finally, in the medium and long term, the functions of the coordination platform will be transferred from Brussels to the structures of the G5 Sahel. This platform, under the responsibility of the EU Military Staff since November 2017 and composed of five persons, provides an overview of the needs of the G5 Sahel joint military force as well as possible offers of military support from EU Member States and other donors (see EUROPE 12155). (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)