The informal meeting of EU’s Defence Ministers was held on February 20 and 21 in Athens and was chaired by the Minister of National Defence Dimitris Avramopoulos on behalf of EU’s High Representative Catherine Ashton. It included three working sessions, dedicated respectively to briefing the European Council on defence and security, ongoing EU operations and the situation in Central African Republic.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and the UN Undersecretary General for peace support operations Herve Ladsous, participated in sessions of the meeting.
At the end of the meeting, Mr. Avramopoulos noted: “Our meeting confirmed a dynamic Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) agenda. We have a lot of work regarding the implementation of the conclusion of December’s Council. While preparations for deployment in Central-African Republic are underway, the EU will be conducting very soon five operations, which is a confirmation of the increasing role of the Union as a security provider”.
The conclusions of the last European Council in December were discussed in the first session. These conclusions will form the agenda of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) until June 2015, when the leaders will come back to the issue of security and defence. The Ministers agreed on a positive assessment of the results of the European Council and asked for this momentum to be maintained through specific actions and tangible progress. They particularly addressed the tasks which must be performed to achieve a strategy for maritime security, quick reaction, support to the local and regional partners for the creation of capabilities, as well as the development of a policy framework for a more systematic and long term defence cooperation within the EU.
Discussions on Friday focused on EU’s military operations, which remain in the core of CSDP. The Ministers initially examined the progress and perspectives of the four ongoing military operations of the EU (EU NAVFOR Atalanta, EUFOR Althea, EUTM Somalia, and EUTM Mali), whereas they were briefed by the respective Commanders of Operations. The Ministers welcomed the results achieved by these operations.
A special session was dedicated to Central African Republic. The EU is actively involved in the efforts which the international community has launched to face the political and humanitarian aspects of the crisis, as well as those regarding security and human rights. The operation EUFOR RCA was initiated by the European Council on February 10 and will be deployed as soon as possible to protect civilians. The Ministers were briefed by the United Nations on the evaluation of the situation and by the recently appointed EUFOR RCA Operation Commander, Major General Philippe Pontiès on the force generation and the preparations of the deployment for the operation. The Ministers expressed their concerns about the situation in Central-African Republic and asked for the fast deployment of the EU operation.
During the press conference which concluded the Informal Meeting of Defence Ministers the Minister of National Defence Dimitris Avramopoulos interviewed on the situation in Ukraine stated:
“As you may know, the meeting of Foreign Affairs Ministers is still being held and the mission that Mrs. Ashton sent to Ukraine is still underway. The dramatic events in Ukraine are escalated and they result in uncontrollable situations. The victims, as we may be informed, are increasing and the situation finally seems much more complicated than it seemed at first. These are situations that Europe has experienced dramatically in the past and of course must not experience them again.
This is why it is more necessary than ever to be present and support the efforts made which may guarantee for the democracy, social peace and prosperity of Ukraine. By isolating extremists through dialogue, respecting human rights as well as the opposite opinion, which are key values of the European civilisation.
At the same time, we cannot overlook the historical particularities and the reasonable concerns for the geopolitical balances. Cautiousness, prudence and insight are required now. As the Greek Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, noticed shortly before after his today’s meeting with NATO Secretary General, Mr. Rasmussen, we need stability and security, stressing though that conditions are difficult too. On the other side, as you may know, Mr. Rasmussen stressed that “the Ukrainian government is responsible to ensure that the army will not intervene”.
The EU, its institutions and organs can and should guarantee for this crisis to be overcome.
Yesterday, Mrs. Ashton stated that “violence is not acceptable and it must stop immediately. The EU, therefore, remains ready to support Ukraine in the process of the political dialogue”.
Our proposal, Europe’s proposal, which is the political partnership and economic integration remain permanently on the table of the negotiations. Our commitment is to bring peoples and citizens closer.
Moreover, it has been agreed upon to suspend exports of material and assets which may be used for repression in the country. Of course, nothing is definite. Sessions are still being held.
The contribution and the efforts of the EU, and not only, must be continued thoroughly and social and political destruction in Ukraine must be avoided by all means.