Paris, 01/03/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 6 February, speaking at a seminar on the future of ESDP, organised by the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS, headed by Nicole Gnessoto) in Paris, General David Leakey, the former commander of European forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina, said the European Union mission in Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR) had been a “great success”. EUFOR, which has been on the ground since December 2004, established itself as the military force in charge of guaranteeing security and stability, its principal mission being to support the fight against organised crime, a scourge that is undermining the country's economy. Although EUFOR troops initially found it difficult to undertake duties that they felt should be those of police forces, and although they also met with resistance within the EU police mission in Bosnia (EUPM), which “did not like the idea that EUFOR should work in the police arena”, they ended up achieving good results, General Leakey explained.
Another success is the good cooperation that has developed on the ground between EUFOR personnel, the European Commission delegation and the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM). Nonetheless, “we could have done even better with better cooperation from all actors of the EU family”, General Leakey explained, urging for greater consistency, unity and civil-military cooperation from Brussels. Although he does admit that, when he left in December 2005, these weaknesses had been largely rectified, General Leakey recommends that one should continue to ensure enhanced cooperation and closer coordination between all EU actors, civil as well as military and at every level.