Brussels, 28/04/2006 (Agence Europe) - After UN approval on 25 April, the EU Council of Ministers is expected to adopt without debate, on 27 April, the joint action allowing for deployment of the EU military force responsible for supporting the United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) during the presidential and legislative elections to be held in DRC in June. The day before, the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the EU Member States (Coreper) expressed its agreement on the text defining the mandate of the European force in DRC, known as EUFOR RD Congo. This is the second “autonomous” EU military operation (conducted without NATO participation) after Artemis was launched in Ituri in 2003.
In the wake of the adoption of the Council's joint action, the commander of the operation, General Karlheinz Viereck of the German Army Corps, will convene the force generation conference during which he will invite EU Member States to specify the military personnel that they plan to provide for the EU operation in DRC. About ten countries plan to send personnel to support the mission, but France and Germany will provide the backbone of the force (each sending 500 military). The beginning of force deployment will be decided by the EU Council of Ministers after approval of the Operations Plan (OPLAN), and in the light of the timetable for the presidential and legislative elections in DRC.
EU force structure: EUFOR RD Congo provides for 450 military to be sent to Kinshasa under the command of French General Christian Damay, the deployment of a rapid reaction force of the size of a battalion (about 1000 military) to the region (Gabon is often mentioned), as well as a standby force of around 1500 men in Europe (as for the other EU-led military missions). The strategic command of this operation will be located in Potsdam, at the operational headquarters of the German armed forces, under the orders of General Viereck.
Objectives, duration and cost of operation: In line with Resolution 1671 (2006) of 25 April from the UN Security Council, which authorises deployment of the European force in DRC, the EUFOR RD (taken up in the joint action) mandate is as follows: - provide support for MONUC to stabilise a situation, should MONUC encounter serious difficulties in carrying out its mandate; - contribute to the protection of civilians exposed to the imminent threat of physical violence in areas where it will be deployed, without prejudice to the responsibility of the DRC government; - contribute to the protection of Kinshasa airport; - ensure the security and freedom of movement of personnel as well as protect EUFOR RD Congo installations; - and carry out operations of a limited kind in order to extract individuals in danger. The EU operation should come to an end four months after the date of the first round of presidential and legislative elections. The EU budget foreseen for joint costs of the operation amount to €16.7 million (for the four-month period).
On 25 April, France's representative at the United Nations Security Council, Jean-Marc de La Sablière, welcomed the adoption of a resolution bearing witness to the commitment of the international community and especially of the United Nations and Europe, in favour of the peace process in DRC.