Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-06-14-Speech-3-054"
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"en.20000614.4.3-054"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, during Portugal’s Presidency of the European Union the development of the Common European Security and Defence Policy has been regarded as a priority, as is evident from the document which we presented at the beginning. The report to be submitted to the European Council in Santa Maria da Feira will detail the progress made on the various mandates received in Helsinki. In particular it will cover the development of the European military capability, the headline goal, the institutional development of the permanent political and military bodies, the relations between the European Union and third countries in this area, the relations between the European Union and NATO, an indication of whether or not the EU Treaty needs to be revised and the problem of non-military crisis management mechanisms.
In the area of foreign policy and the Common European Security and Defence Policy, the EU has decided to develop the military and non-military dimensions in parallel. We clearly must coordinate these two dimensions and particularly the military and non-military crisis management actions which the EU may decide to undertake. This coordination will be carried out by the new structures of the Common Foreign and Security Policy, in particular by the Political and Security Committee, the future Military Committee and the Committee for Civilian Crisis Management. I must point out that the interim bodies started work in March 2000 and that the Committee for Civilian Crisis Management was formally created during the Portuguese Presidency.
As will be evident from the Presidency’s report to the Feira European Council, an effort is being made to simultaneously develop the military and non-military crisis management capabilities. The Member States have already been working to develop the headline goal. For example this was discussed yesterday at a meeting of the General Affairs Council attended by the Defence Ministers. The Feira European Council will also see the Member States make a commitment to develop their civil police capability by 2003, with up to 5 000 officers, for crisis management operations. This represents a major effort by the Member States to ensure sustained and uniform development of these two dimensions which are fundamental for security and stability.
On another issue raised in Mr Brok’s question, I must say that strengthening the Common Foreign and Security Policy by developing a common European security and defence policy, thus allowing the EU to establish a military capability and also to reinforce the efficacy of its civilian crisis management mechanisms, does not necessarily require an increase in the defence budgets of the Member States. Rather, the basic objective will be to improve the use and rationalisation of the military assets and capabilities of the Member States. In this context it must be said that the European Union will use, in order to develop the headline goal, the NATO defence planning, the planning and review process for countries which are not members of NATO and the defence capabilities initiative which is ongoing within the Alliance.
Every effort is being made to ensure effective use of all the assets and capabilities and to avoid the duplication which could lead to additional defence costs. No increase in the Community budget is planned as these efforts are to be implemented by the Member States in a context of voluntary cooperation. A final answer on the budgetary impact of this policy may only be given, however, after the Commitment Capability Conference
to be held in the autumn. This will analyse the national military contributions to this joint effort and the shortfalls which it may be considered necessary to meet.
As for the involvement of the European Parliament in this process, it should be recalled that the Common European Security and Defence Policy is a component of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. The EU intends to make its foreign dimension more effective and credible by developing military and civilian crisis management capabilities. Under Article 21 of the Treaty on European Union, Parliament shall be consulted by the Presidency on the main aspects and the basic choices of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. The views of Parliament shall be taken into consideration by the Council. The European Parliament shall also be kept regularly informed of the development of the Common Foreign and Security Policy and may ask the Council about aspects which it considers are important and may make recommendations which it deems appropriate. The need to avoid unnecessary duplication and to make the best use of all the existing assets and capabilities also underlies the development of the Common European Security and Defence Policy. It is therefore natural that the Member States have from the beginning advocated the transfer of WEU powers which could prove useful in the process now under way in the European Union.
Portugal, which holds the Presidency of the WEU, has tried to advance the process for transferring powers from the WEU to the European Union."@en1
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