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EU: Treaty establishing the European Gendarmerie Force

01 October 2007

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Treaty establishing the European Gendarmerie Force (pdf) set up by Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands and Portugal. Para-military police units ("police forces with military status" to be used in "crisis management" anywhere in the world including by NATO or in the EU. EUROGENDFOR will be under the control and political direction of CIMIN (High Level Interdepartmental Committee) The Treaty is open to other EU member states or candidate countries).

Tony Bunyan, Statewatch editor, comments:

"This ad hoc initiative taken by five EU member states states brings together armed para-military units, some of which are infamous for their behaviour at protests. The EGF will be acting in the support of the military in the name of the EU as a whole. Military plans would allow this force to be used inside the EU as well as outside.

What lines of accountability for its actions will there be? It will be accountable only to itself"

See for background:

- EU: Five countries establish a European paramilitary police force (link)

- Statewatch: Global "policing" role for EU: How "non-military crisis management" will "contaminate" justice and home affairs, trade and aid (link)

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