Military

SHAPE News Summary & Analysis

05 December 2003

FRANCE-NATO-ESDP

• At a time when Washington is worried about European defense projects liable to rival NATO, France is issuing manifold displays of goodwill to the United States. Via Defense Minister Alliot-Marie, Paris Thursday voiced its wish to become, by 2006, Europe’s “framework nation” in the event of international operations requiring a very rapid deployment of troops, either through the NRF or with the EU, reports Le Figaro. Paris’ aim is to establish a command post capable of deploying “personnel equivalent to an army corps,” that is 100,000 troops, the article claims. It notes that visiting the multinational “Opera 3 Terre” exercise in northeast France, Alliot-Marie reaffirmed that “for France, the Atlantic Alliance remains the foundation of collective defense,” adding that NATO and Europe’s security and defense policy are “fully compatible and complementary.” Stressing that the “Opera 3 Terre” exercise offered the opportunity to test the architecture of an army corps the authority of which could cover up to 150,000 troops involved in high intensity warfare or any other operation, Le Monde says that in the summer of 2004, Gen. Thomann, the commander of the Land Force Command in Lille (COMFAT) will start setting up in the city the elements of a multinational headquarters which will be operational in 2006. By 2006, adds the newspaper, France plans to ask for the Lille command to be certified by NATO. A Times correspondent, who was invited to observe the exercise, writes: “The HQ (being developed in Lille), which is meant to be similar to NATO’s ARRC, needs such exercises to resolve practical difficulties thrown up by the sort of international military interventions that it aspires to lead. French Chief of the General Staff Gen. Thorette said the force would be placed at NATO’s disposal, “just like ARRC”…. In the short term, … Alliot-Marie hopes that the Lille command structure … will enable France to take the lead in international military interventions. In the long term, French ambitions are greater still. Their hope is that the center in Lille will be a step toward the creation of a European army—and with it its HQ in France. Significantly, there was only one American liaison officer at the exercise. The French Army says that it invited more U.S. troops, but they were ‘too busy’ to come.” A related Daily Telegraph article says: “Soldiers from 10 countries, including Britain, trained for a new, French-led rapid reaction force which will be offered for use by NATO and the EU. The new land force will be headquartered in Lille and seek certification from NATO in 2006.”

NATO-IRAQ

• According to AFP, Iraq’s interim Foreign Minister Zeybari said Thursday his country would greatly welcome a heightened NATO role to help restore stability. “We as Iraqis would welcome very much all international efforts coming from other members of the international community to help us. They can be helpful in this transitional period but we believe Iraqis should be in charge,” he reportedly stressed.

Media center on Secretary of State Powell’s call, at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels Thursday, for NATO to consider expanding its Iraq role.
The New York Times notes that NATO Secretary General Robertson confirmed that no NATO member had ruled out playing a bigger role in Iraq. But, the article adds, he said several ministers had expressed concern that NATO might be stretched too thin as it expanded its activities in Afghanistan.
Stressing that “one must define precisely what a possible NATO commitment in Iraq would mean,” Die Tageszeitung comments: “It is clear what the United States understands it to be: support for its policy plus the hope that at least some American troops can be replaced by other troops…. This is not the only imaginable scenario for a NATO operation in Iraq. Also conceivable would be a mission with a UN mandate that would rule out a U.S. supreme command. Such a decision would give a signal to those Iraqi forces that long for an end of the war but reject a foreign occupying force…. There is no other organization besides NATO that at least logistically would be able to give military support to an orderly transfer of power to a civilian government—if that is possible at all.”

NATO-ENLARGEMENT

• Sofia’s Kohrizont radio, Dec. 4, quoted Bulgarian Foreign Minister Pasi saying NATO foreign ministers decided by consensus Thursday that Bulgaria and the other six candidate members should join the Alliance earlier than planned. Full-fledged membership will take effect in the spring of 2004 and Bulgaria will therefore be able to participate as a full-fledged member in NATO’s June summit in Istanbul, Pasi reportedly said. In a similar vein, Lithuanian Radio, Dec. 4, quoted Foreign Minister Valionis saying present NATO members should complete the ratification of accords on the entry of new members by April 2004 and Lithuania would therefore take part in the Istanbul summit as a full-fledged member.