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	Is the EU Prepared for the Future Challenges of the Security and Defence Policy? Javier Solana The German Presidency of the European Union during the first six months of 2007 was highly successful. After very difficult negotiations the heads of state and government, with Federal Chancellor Merkel presiding, have reached agreement on a detailed negotiating mandate for a “reform treaty”. This treaty will enable the EU to meet the big challenges of the future. The union will become more transparent, more democratic and more capable to act. The President of the European Council will be elected for two and a half years and ensures the continuity and transparency of the EU policy. The “High Representative of the Union for Foreign and Security Policy” who, at the same time, will become Vice President of the Commission for Foreign Relations and assume the chairmanship in the Council for Foreign Relations with a European Foreign Service at his disposal to assist him provides for coherency and outward effectiveness of the common EU policy. The rights of the European Parliament will be strengthened just as those of the national representations. In future, the European Parliament will elect the President of the European Commission. Combating terrorism and crime will be attached paramount importance and new regulations were adopted for climate protection and energy policy. The progresses made in the narrower field of the European Security and Defence Policy are also impressive both in respect to operations of the EU, the development of the civilian and military capabilities, the improvement in the cooperation with the United Nations and in the development of the planning and command and control capability of the EU. All this shows how dynamically and vigorously the EU is advancing. Since 2003 — that is in a period of only four years — the EU has started or successfully ended 15 operations — eleven civilian or civil-military and four military ones — within the framework of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP). As of 15 June 2007 is has begun its 16^th operation with the civilian police and rule-of-law mission in Afghanistan . Another large-scale police and rule-of-law operation is planned for Kosovo when its status is finally decided on and when a mandate of the UN Security Council allows the EU to conduct such a mission in Kosovo as a succession of the mission of the United Nations (UNMIK). About 10,000 men and women were so far employed in operations of the EU: police from all EU member states, soldiers, judges, and young people of all origins who committed themselves to peace and development. The Kosovo operation is intended to comprise about 1,800 police forces and experts. In Afghanistan , about 200 police personnel are going to be employed, including the contributions of non-EU states. The dimension of this operation is remarkable both in geographical and topical respects: on three continents — in Europe, Africa, and Asia — they cover a spectrum which ranges from military peacekeeping to police missions for the buildup and reform of police structures in crisis-torn countries and up to support missions to help in the reform of the security sector of fragile states and the setup of functioning institutions. The EU has thus developed to a global security actor in just a few years. Within a short period of time we have managed to let actions follow the words, to move from pure theory to practice, from declarations to operations. The EU is and remains a primarily political and economic power: With almost 500 million citizens in the near future they generate more than a quarter of the world’s gross national product, contribute a share of 40 percent in worldwide exports, and render half of the worldwide development aid. But a political union of 27 European nations with such a level of performance has also regional and global security interests and responsibilities. Since its inception at the European Council Meeting in Cologne in 1999 the European Security and Defence Policy being an integral element of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) aims at an integrated civil-military approach for the management of crises. The successful implementation of this ambitious claim constitutes the “characteristic unique position” of the ESDP and its “added value” in international crisis management. The European Security Strategy of December 2003 provides the political-conceptual framework for that. Operations Not quite seven years after the goal-setting decisions of Nice on the buildup of the ESDP structures it can be stated that the ESDP has been fielded, it is a reality. The largest operation, the military operation ALTHEA in Bosnia and Herzegovina, began in late 2004 with about 7,000 personnel from 22 member states and eleven partner nations, among them Turkey, Canada, Chile, and Morocco. It cooperates effectively with the European Police Mission (EUPM), which is also active in Bosnia and Herzegovina . But we don’t want to stay in Bosnia forever. The Bosnians themselves must assume responsibility for their country. The military presence is being gradually reduced and encompasses just about 2,500 personnel today. Nevertheless, our troops will remain visible in the country and can be quickly augmented, if necessary. Under the politically coordinated authority of the EU Special Commissioner (and High Representative of the International Community) the EU will, conjointly with NATO which still maintains a small headquarters there, lead the country step-by-step into the Euro-Atlantic integration. The civil and civil-military operations of the EU are less spectacular, but should not be underestimated in their effect. I want to illustrate their significance by a few examples: The EU observer mission in Aceh (Sumatra/Indonesia) consisting of about 290 personnel, among them many soldiers, monitored the implementation of a peace agreement between the Indonesian government and the GAM rebel organization jointly with five nations of the regional ASEAN organization from September 2005 to December 2006. Although this operation received only little attention in the European public it was nonetheless a success story for the EU, which was hardly believed to be possible. After decades of civil war there is now for the first time a realistic chance for true peace on the peninsula. The parties accepted no other organization or power than the EU as guarantor of the peace treaty. It was the first time that ASEAN states participated in a peace mission and cooperated with the EU. The appearance of the EU in Asia as a political peace factor was of strategic significance and has opened a new dimension for CFSP and ESDP. Despite the dramatic, unfortunate developments in the Middle East in the past months, the civilian Border Assistance Mission of the EU at the Rafah border crossing-point in Gaza should also be mentioned here. The idea was to open for the first time the border to Egypt and to put the control of the circulation of people and goods over this checkpoint into the hands of the Palestinian authorities. 70 European customs and police officers were to monitor the adherence to international standards and to instruct and train the Palestinian officers. The transfer of governmental executive functions to the Palestinian Autonomous Authority and the chance for an economic pick-up of the Gaza Strip were to be connected with the security interests of Israel . In view of the recent belligerent developments in the Gaza Strip it is unfortunately uncertain whether and when the EU mission can resume its work. In Darfur/Sudan the EU, in combination with the United States , Canada , Norway and NATO, is supporting the African Union (AU) in the execution of the AMIS peace mission. The European Commission has so far put up 282 million Euros to finance the mission; including the bilateral support from EU member states it is more than 450 million Euros. Together with the Americans the EU provides military observers and officers as experts to the AMIS headquarters to strengthen their command structure. A contingent of European police forces advises and assists the African colleagues who are to maintain law and order in the refugee camps. The EU organizes conjointly with NATO the air transport of the African battalions to and from the area of operation, and together with the Americans the EU has given massive political and diplomatic support to the peace negotiations in Abuja in 2006. The situation in Darfur continues to be catastrophic, however. But it is and will be about ending the war in the oppressed province and to advance at the same time the buildup of the AU to a regional organization which is capable to act and able to take care of the continent’s security concerns on its own. The huge political, humanitarian security crisis in Darfur itself is just a part of a larger regional problem: The ethnic structures and political processes on either side of the border to Chad and also to the Central African Republic are just as interwoven as the interests and actions of the different actors and groups. The enormous number of refugees and expellees in the camps in Darfur and in Chad is a dreadful evidence of that. The UN has therefore been planning for quite some time already to set up an operation in the East of Chad and in the Northeast of the Central African Republic . France responded to this intention and suggested to the EU an operation which will help improve the security for the population over there, secure a UN-led police mission in the camps, and facilitate humanitarian aid until the UN itself is capable of dispatching troops to that region. The plannings for an ESDP operation are now being advanced in close coordination with the United Nations. Following the operation ARTEMIS in Eastern Congo in 2003 which was conducted under the command and control of France , the EUFOR RD CONGO operation with about 2,300 soldiers from 21 nations was the second military operation of the EU carried out by its own efforts, that is without the help of NATO. This time it was Germany that assumed for the first time the overall military command and control with its Operations Headquarters in Potsdam , which received great attention on international level. On request of the United Nations the EU supported with a limited, but efficient military contribution the UN mission MONUC during the election process in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the second half of 2006 – primarily to deter potential troublemakers and to encourage the electorate to cast their votes. With the military mission to secure the elections we have set a clear example of our commitment to the future of the country and of our determination not to allow the political transformation process to fail after long years of cruel force and violence. The “autonomous” military operation was part of an overall effort of the Europeans, however. The EU has financed the elections up to 80 percent. The civilian EUSEC RD CONGO mission is now in a process of helping rebuild the run-down Congolese armed forces and the EUPOL RD CONGO mission is training the Congolese police forces in accordance with the European standards. Capacities The examples show that ESDP operations often have a civilian and military dimension. And the advancement of the capabilities of the EU is geared to that. Since 2003, the EU regards itself to be technically capable of conducting military operations in the entire spectrum of the Petersberg Tasks (humanitarian and rescue missions, peacekeeping as well as combat missions for crisis management), but only within the limits set by existing deficits: essential capabilities like transport, reconnaissance, command and control, mobility or air refueling cannot be generated by the Europeans to a sufficient degree yet. And the European Security Strategy involves even new tasks. They underline the orientation of the EU towards a long-term stabilization, i.e. establishment of institutions, disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of militia and armed rebel organizations; reform of entire security sectors of fragile states as well as support for non-member countries in the fight against international terrorism. The Military Headline Goal 2010 focuses therefore mainly on quality and response capability and provides for the development of flexibly employable, quickly available and deployable force contingents. The required capabilities for a number of thinkable mission scenarios were defined in a systematic planning process. At present, the contributions reported by the member states, the remaining deficiencies as well as potential operational risks are being assessed and evaluated. The European Defence Agency (EDA) will play a major role in finding solutions, helping to close the gaps, and tailoring the capability planning to a time span beyond 2010. With its Battle Group capacity the EU disposes of a specific capability for quick reaction since early 2007 already. It is now possible to conduct two Battle Group operations at the same time. As to the civilian side the EU has defined several priority fields for civilian capabilities: police force, establishment of a constitutional state, setup or reform of civilian administrations, protection of the civil population, observer and monitoring missions, and support for the EU special commissioners in several regions of the world. Our member states have committed themselves to remarkable contributions: 5,700 police; 630 judges, public prosecutors and warders; 560 civilian administrative experts; 5,000 civil Defence experts; 500 experts for observer missions, and about 400 for special commissioner tasks. The Civilian Headline Goal 2008 and multifunctional civilian capability packages were developed analogously to the Military Headline Goal 2010. Civil-Military Coordination There is broad agreement about the fact that the EU must act in its entirety as regards foreign policy affairs and that it has to improve its effectiveness as a whole. The reform treaty of the EU will hopefully be a milestone on the way to unitary planning and coherent external action of the EU. But there remains still a lot to do. At present, our internal reform considerations are primarily centered on two fields: If we want to act in a carefully considered and prepared way, offer the political side freedom of choice and gain adequate time for reaction, a foresighted analysis, the development of strategic options, and integrated planning will be indispensable. This must be structured in a civil-military and “inter-level” way. An important step in this direction was made with the Civilian/Military Cell in the EU Military Staff where diplomats, officers, and officials of the Commission cooperate effectively in mixed teams. If quick and flexible, but also situationrelated and effective reaction is to be possible, a civilian and military, closely coordinated parallel planning over and beyond the individual command echelons will be imperative. With the new EU Operations Center there is a central planning and command capacity available in Brussels since the beginning of 2007. The nucleus of that center is part of the Civilian/Military Cell. On decision by the Council it can be augmented within a very short time by personnel from the EU Military Staff, the Secretariat General, and from member states and increase to the full strength of about 90 personnel; it will then be able to plan and conduct a medium-scale military or a larger civil-military ESDP operation. The Operation Center will then function like an Operation Headquarters of the EU and thus constitutes a third command option on strategic level – aside from SHAPE in case of Berlin-Plus operations and the five EU-designated national (GE, NL, FR, IT, UK) supreme commands. The development of the military command capability has its equivalent on the civilian side. The command and control of civilian operations is presently still in the hands of a Head of Mission in the country of operations. With regard to the professional conduct of exacting civilian operations, the EU is now setting up a fully trained, three-stage command organization for civilian operations, which is commensurable with the military command structure. In future, a civilian Operation Commander will be in charge of all heads of missions. For that purpose an own organic staff having the function of a civilian headquarters will assist him. With that, all essential elements of a central, civil-military planning and command capability will be available in Brussels which is in full accord with the holistic claim of our security and Defence policy. I am sure that a global security actor of the size, importance, responsibility, and range of action of the EU must be fully and absolutely capable in the long run of conducting its own operations: the responsibility for planning, execution and success is indivisible. Concluding Remarks In many regions of the world the EU is regarded as a model, a place with a degree of freedom and peace, prosperity and stability, which is unparalleled. The stability achieved in Europe radiates far beyond our continent and has become a paragon for other world regions. This entails responsibility. Our own interest demands that we commit ourselves to stability, peace, and human rights in the other regions of this world, too. There is a specific European way of acting in the world: seeking the dialogue, building bridges, cooperating with others, but also protecting the weak ones who need our help. More active, more capable, and more coherent – these are our strategic imperatives, which Europe has set itself. The challenges, which the EU has to meet as a global actor, are extremely diverse and complex and we must therefore combine all our efforts to strengthen our capabilities even more. By *Professor Dr. Javier Solana,* High Representative of the European Union for Common Foreign and Security Policy.