Military

SHAPE News Summary & Analysis

5 January 2004

SACEUR-BULGARIA

• The Bulgarian Defense Ministry said in a press release Sunday that Gen. Jones would arrive on a visit to Bulgaria on Jan. 8, reported Sofia’s BTA, Jan. 5. According to the dispatch, the press release added that Bulgaria’s NATO integration and the future tasks of the Bulgarian armed forces within the allied collective security system are expected to be discussed during the visit. It reportedly stressed that the visit is planned “along NATO lines.”

NATO

• AFP, Dec. 29, quoted the Polish Defense Ministry saying it had signed a 300 million-euro contract to buy 2,700 Israeli Spike anti-tank missiles for the Polish army, in its latest move to come up to NATO standards. The missiles are to be manufactured under license in Poland. Under the deal, between 2004-2013, the army will take delivery of nearly 2,700 missiles made by Israeli company Rafael, defense ministry officials reportedly told a news conference. The dispatch also quoted Deputy Defense Minister Zemke saying Poland would buy 264 mobile rocket launchers to be fitted out in 2006 to the Patria AMV armored vehicles bought by Poland from Finland.
  
  
• According to AFP, the German Navy is to resume its anti-terrorism patrols off Gibraltar this month. The dispatch quoted a military spokesman saying a small fleet including three speedboats and a tender were to leave their base in northern Germany bound for the Strait of Gibraltar. German ships have been used to search for potential terrorist supply routes, carry out coast watch activities and ensure the safety of transport vessels as part of NATO’s “Active Endeavor” anti-terror mission in the Mediterranean Sea, the dispatch recalled.

Media focus on remarks by new NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, at a news conference at NATO Monday, generally highlighting his statement that his main priority would be the success of the Alliance’s mission in Afghanistan.
Dutchman Jaap de Hoop Scheffer took over as NATO’s top official Monday pledging to unite the Alliance as it prepares for a wider role in Afghanistan and, perhaps, Iraq, reports AP. The dispatch continues: “NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan is currently limited to around 5,500 troops in Kabul and the northern city of Kunduz. In response to appeals from the UN and the Afghan government, NATO is drawing up plans to expand its force to other provincial cities. De Hoop Scheffer said Sunday’s agreement on a new constitution for Afghanistan underlined the importance of helping build stability there. However, he faces a difficult task persuading allied governments to commit manpower for the wider mission, which may entail several thousand extra soldiers. In apparent reference to his predecessor’s struggle to put together the right mix of specialist troops and equipment for the Kabul operation, he reminded allies they must match political decisions with ‘the need to meet requirements on the ground.’”
Mr. Jaap de Hoop Scheffer took over as NATO head Monday pledging to act with “vigor” at a crucial time for the Alliance, as it faces key challenges in Afghanistan and possibly Iraq, reports AFP. He said keeping U.S.-Europe relations on an even keel will be a key priority and stressed that bolstering ISAF in Afghanistan must be the Alliance’s “primary focus: for the moment,” adds the dispatch, noting that he declined to be drawn on whether NATO will take a wider role in Iraq. “It is not to be excluded…. Of course, that will depend on the political developments as they take place and shape. Iraq will be on the agenda at a certain stage, but let’s take the events step by step,” he reportedly said.
A related BBC World Service broadcast observed that the Afghan mission is a serious test of NATO credibility.

ESDP

• The Irish Times reports that Ireland, which took over the EU’s rotating presidency on Jan. 1, is to begin the process of establishing an EU military planning cell under a deal reached by EU leaders last December. According to the newspaper, the presidency will also take the first steps toward creating an intergovernmental agency for defense capabilities development. The agency, which will probably be based in Brussels, would reportedly allow member states to work together on a voluntary basis to enhance their forces’ capacity to work together and to reduce unnecessary duplication. EU police missions in Bosnia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will continue during the Irish presidency and preparations will begin for the biggest EU military operation to date—a follow-up to SFOR, notes the article. It adds that the presidency will also seek to strengthen the UN dimension of the EU’s security policy and will examine a call for the EU to establish a rapid-response capability in support of the UN. Such a capability would mean that the EU could deploy troops to conflict areas within days of a UN Security Council resolution. The government is reportedly confident that Ireland’s traditional good relations with the United States will help to improve the transatlantic mood after a turbulent year. The Irish strategy will be to focus on achieving measurable progress in fields of mutual interest, including the fight against terrorism, while remaining alert to emerging transatlantic disputes that have the potential to escalate.

IRAQ

• The Washington Post quotes U.S. officials saying that in preparation for ending its occupation of Iraq, the United States is planning to create its largest diplomatic mission in the world in Baghdad, with a staff of more than 3,000. According to the newspaper, the transition will mark the handover of responsibility from the Pentagon to the State Department, which will help oversee two definitive steps in creating Iraq’s first freely elected democratic government. One of the first steps will be resuming relations between Washington and Baghdad. The other major challenge will be sorting out the terms of the U.S. military presence, which is expected to exceed 100,000 troops even after the occupation ends. One U.S. official is quoted saying: “We have to determine what command American troops will be under: Will it be part of some kind of multinational force, under the UN, under NATO? Or will they be relatively independent in an agreement with the Iraqi government? These are huge questions to be answered in a very short amount of time.”