Innsbruck, 07/03/2006 (Agence Europe) - - European defence ministers decided during their informal meeting in Innsbruck to give themselves more time to study the UN request that an EU military force should be made ready to take action should things get out of hand during the June elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo. So far, ministers have been unable to define how they would contribute to such an operation whose mandate has not been clearly specified. Some Member States were even reticent about mobilising troops to this end. Javier Solana was invited by ministers to step up his contacts with DRC President Joseph Kabila and the leaders of the African Union (AU) in order to obtain more details about real needs. During a press conference, on 7 March, Austrian Defence Minister, Günther Platter, gave his assurance that his counterparts have yet again given their agreement of principle to organising this kind of support operation. Solana went on to say that all countries are in favour of preparing such a mission. He acknowledged that there was a need for better planning when it comes to the detailed arrangements for this mission. On 8 March, he will have the opportunity to discuss the matter during a meeting with the AU president and also with a number of Bundestag members in Germany.
During this informal meeting, France as well as Sweden and Ireland showed they were willing to take part in the operation, whereas the United Kingdom and Austria clearly stated that they were only willing to send only a handful of servicemen (up to 10 for Austria). Germany is not hostile to making soldiers available but does not wish to take on the leadership of the mission. France has called for participation by the largest number of EU countries possible, while Solana has stressed that the operation could work very well with just two or three countries involved. Several ministers recalled that they should first of all consult their parliament before deciding what contributions they should make.