“The stabilisation of the Sahel is a challenge for Europe” and “it will evolve its missions in Mali”, said Belgian Lieutenant General Peter Devogelaere, who took command of Eurocorps on Thursday 2 September in Strasbourg. He succeeds French Lieutenant General Laurent Kolodziej, for a two-year term of office in a rotation between Germany, Spain, France, and Belgium, the four main contributors to the European Rapid Reaction Corps (Interview by Véronique Leblanc).
Agence Europe – What is the role of Eurocorps and what are its numbers?
General Devogelaere – Created in 1992, Eurocorps is a multinational headquarters providing a permanent and operational command structure, capable of deploying at very short notice, both for the European Union and NATO.
It brings together five ‘lead nations’—Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Spain—and six ‘associated nations’—Greece, Turkey, Italy, Romania, Poland, and, since last June, Austria. It has about 1,000 soldiers. Engaged as a whole, it can command up to 60,000 ground forces.
What are your objectives as head of Eurocorps?
One of the main ones is the preparation of a NATO accreditation to ensure that Eurocorps is fully operational in case of an alert. These cyclical assessments are essential in a world where there is a need to react immediately to increasingly dispersed strategic risks, be they military, terrorist, climatic, or health risks.
Our bilateral agreement with the European Union is another key part of our work. Eurocorps supports the European headquarters assigned to the EUTM Mali (since 2015) and Central African Republic (since 2016) missions. A rotation will leave for Bangui this Friday, and another will follow in February 2022.
In view of your experience on the ground, particularly in Mali and Afghanistan—where that country’s army has collapsed despite being ‘trained’ by the West—do you think that these European missions make sense?
In Mali and the Central African Republic, the EU intervened at the request of local governments.
In the case of Afghanistan, it is a different matter; the US acted as part of an ‘invasion’ aimed at the heads of Al Qaeda. Their mission then took a different course and integrated—especially in Kabul—the development of Afghan society. Today, the Taliban will have to work with a society that has had 20 years of interaction with the West.
The European missions in Mali and the Central African Republic are part of a comprehensive EU approach that includes development aid and support for good governance. Eurocorps is doing its part in stabilising the Sahel, which is a European issue. It will depend on how the population and the leaders evolve.
Furthermore, in Mali, Europe will evolve on these missions. The training should be accompanied by non-executive accompaniment in the field, a form of coaching that will add value to the Malian army’s operations.
Do you think that Europe is giving itself the means to meet its strategic challenges?
It is not yet able to conduct operations as the Americans can, but things are underway and the funds released for the EUTM missions will allow us to be more effective on the ground.
Europe can no longer be satisfied with being a ‘soft power’. The hardware approach is necessary in a world that has undoubtedly become more dangerous.
When is Poland expected to be integrated as a ‘lead nation’?
The process is underway and nations are negotiating in the Joint Committee [which is comprised of the Army Chief of Staff and the political leadership for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Eurocorps, editors’ note]. I think that the process could be successful in the medium term.