Brussels, 25/09/2003 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday Kofi Annan, Secretary General of the United Nations and Silvio Berlusconi, President of the European Council signed a joint declaration (in a backdrop to the General Assembly in New York) on EU and UN cooperation on conflict management. The declaration is as follows:
"The Secretary General of the United Nations and the Presidency of the Council of the European Union welcome the existing cooperation between the United Nations and the European Union in area of civilian and military crisis management, in particular in the Balkans and in Africa. In order to deepen this cooperation and provide it with reliable and sustainable mechanisms, the Secretary General of the United Nations and the Presidency of the Council of the European Union have agreed to the following joint Declaration:
1. The United Nations and the European Union are united by the premise that the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security rests with the United Nations Security Council, in accordance with the United Nations Charter. Within this framework, the European Union reasserts its commitment to contribute to the objectives of the United Nations in crisis management.
2. The United Nations and the European Union recognise that the past year saw great progress in tangible cooperation between them in crisis management areas, specifically the and-over of responsibilities from the United Nations International Police Task Force to the European Union Police Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina; the rapid deployment at the request of the Security Council, of the European Union Military Operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Artemis); and the active consideration by the European Union of ways to assist in the establishment of an Integrated Police Unit in Kinshasa to provide security to the transition government and institutions.
3. Further practical steps should be taken to build on the momentum of the positive cooperation between the United Nations and the European Union. To this end, the United Nations and the European Union agree to establish a joint consultative mechanism at the working level to examine ways and means to enhance mutual co-ordination and compatibility in the following areas:
Planning; including reciprocal assistance in assessment missions and greater contact and cooperation between mission planning units, specifically with regard to logistical resource allocation and inventory as well as interoperability of equipment.
Training: the establishment of joint training standards, procedures and planning for military and civilian personnel, the synchronisation of pre-deployment training for civilian police, military liaison officers and military observers; and the institutionalisation of training seminars, conferences and exercises.
Communication: greater cooperation between situation centres, exchange of liaison officers whenever required (military, civilian police, situation centres, political/headquarters officials); establishment of desk-to-desk dialogue through the respective liaison offices in New York and Brussels.
Best Practices: regularised and systematic exchange of lessons learned and best practices information, including sharing of information on mission and-over and procurement."