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Defence surge despite constitutional hold-up

01 January 2004

The development of a European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) made significant progress during the EU summit in Brussels on 12-14 December 2003 despite the crisis in the EU's constitutional process. Three major steps were taken. A scaled-down operational civil military planning cell, independent of NATO but amenable to the US, was launched. A somewhat watered-down strategic security document was approved. In it the term "pre-emptive engagement" in relation to the combat against terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction was replaced by "preventative engagement" A new armaments agency was formed whereby a 12-member "establishment team" will formulate the agency's legal basis, a budget, the links to the European Commission and the EU Military Committee and the relation with existing armaments groups (OCCAR, WEAG, Letter of intent group).

On the other hand three major elements of the EDSP remained in limbo after the collapse of the constitutional process. The matter of the Mutual Defence Clause designed to subsume the text in the treaty of the former Western European Union was not resolved. The enhanced co-operation in defence, also known as permanent structured co-operation to form a military vanguard of the EU complying with stronger requirements (higher defence expenditures). And the transforming of EU High Representative Solana in a real foreign minister.

Jane's Defence Weekly 24.12.03 (Luke Hill)Euobserver.com 15.12.03 (Mihaela Gherghisan)