Caught in the crossfire

pete quentin, 27 October 2008

In an interview with The Sunday Times, the new Defence Secretary, John Hutton, has backed the creation of a European fighting force, writes Judith Gollata,

which comes as a surprise considering that recent efforts to establish joint military capabilities have not been strongly supported by the UK government (Gordon Brown has played down the prospects of a Euro Army and insisted that the government does not consider it a main priority).
There is currently no European Union military as such, since no agreement has been reached within the Common Security and Defence policy frame. Sovereignty on military issues remains with individual Member States. Calls for joint military capabilities have mainly been made by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nikolas Sarkozy who are pushing for a new military headquarters and more fighting formations. The EU currently has a limited mandate over defence issues backed up by the European Union Battlegroups – a rapid deployment force for humanitarian and rescue tasks, peacekeeping, tasks of combat forces in crisis management including peacemaking, joint disarmament operations and security sector reform operations as part of broader institution building efforts.
John Hutton has become the first defence secretary to back the plan for a European army, going as far as branding those who dismiss it as ‘pathetic’. With his remarks, Hutton provoked criticism from different sides. Some fear that a European Army will stretch British forces even further pointing out that the British military would not be able to provide the number of troops required to develop Europe’s military structures, so a European Army would seriously weaken the UK’s army capacities. Others are deeply suspicious of the idea of strengthening the EU’s military identity fearing that it challenges Washington’s dominance – undermining NATO by excluding the U.S.
Hutton’s support even goes beyond Gordon Brown’s public position and has surprised many because Hutton only recently became Secretary of State for Defence in the cabinet reshuffle early this month. Quite frankly, Brown’s new cabinet generally seems to be quite keen on stating personal opinions regardless of the government’s public positioning on the agenda. However, in a time of growing concern about Britain’s defence financing and the performance of the British army, Hutton has failed to account for the problematic aspects of a European Army.
The main problem with joint military capabilities, as pointed out by Liam Fox the shadow defence secretary, is the risk of duplication. Many of the 27 EU member states are also members of NATO, some EU states cooperate on defence policy albeit primarily through NATO rather than through the EU. Memberships in the EU, WEU, and NATO are distinct, and some EU member states are constitutionally committed to remain neutral on defence issues. As Fox said, ‘what we must not have at a time of scarce resources is duplication of existing structures.’ Furthermore, many Member States’ armies are poorly financed and not capable of being deployed abroad. So it is in Britain, and according to Commander John Muxworthy, of the UK National Defence Association, Mr. Hutton must focus on increasing defence spending. ‘It’s sensible to look for allies, but it’s not sensible to rely on the fact you have them as history shows us time and time again’, he said. ‘Various alliances will not compensate for a serious lack of funding.’ It seems that both John Hutton and the EU lack a financial backup plan and a clear mission for European defence.