The Role of Europe in Global Crisis Management

By Morten Helveg Petersen, MP, The Danish Social Liberal Party, Spokesman on Foreign Affairs This is the ho!r of "!rope , the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Luxembourg cheerfully proclaimed, when he as president of the EU met with the press at the outbreak of the Yugosla ci il war in !""!# $ut Europe could not deli er# %he EU appeared incapable of making a decision on the escalation of the conflict, while the U&A, 'A%( and the U' could aryingly )ustify standing on the sidelines and expect that the great European words were followed by action# *n !""+ the U' and 'A%( were then included in the game and the firm commitment of the Americans led to the ,ayton agreement and 'A%( forces on the ground# %his made the president of the European -ommission, .ac/ues ,elors, almost apologetically declare that the EU had acted #as a chil$ confronte$ %ith an a$!lt crisis # %he lesson was that the EU had to let the carrots of the mediators be supported by the military stick# And the result was a characteristic strengthening of the EU -ommon Foreign and &ecurity 0olicy in the Amsterdam treaty in !""1# $ut during the 2oso o crisis Europe was not able to deli er either# Again the U&A had to lead and in the hard3hitting manner without a U' mandate# %he lesson for the EU was the same as last time# 4owe er much the EU would like to focus on ci il crisis management the facts were that you cannot place power before good intentions, then you simply risk becoming powerless# 4owe er, the result for the EU broke new grounds because the real problem was addressed, that is the historic conflict internally in the EU between 5the Europeans6, especially France, and 5the Atlantics6, particularly 7reat $ritain# %he historic turning point came in the autumn of !""8, when the $ritish 0rime Minister %ony $lair had a showdown with the classic $ritish dogma about separation between the two topics of the EU and defence# Already a few months later in the &t# Malo summit $lair achie ed a compromise with the French 0resident -hirac on a European #capacity for a!tonomo!s action &

Subsequently, things happened in rapid succession and at a surprisingly high pace regarding the build-up of the European military defence forces (ESDP), which provides new and e citing perspectives of Europe!s ability to ta"e on a leading responsibility in global crisis management# $oncretely, the E% set itself the central goal in &''( to be able to dispatch up to )',''' soldiers within )' days and "eep them on the place for at least one year#
For me there is no doubt about the positi e features of the de elopment of the EU as a strong global actor, which is able to handle all the elements of the policies of crisis management# %he role of the EU must first and last be to promote the principles of international peace and security of the U' treaty# %he EU is already by far the largest donor of international de elopment assistance, and the share of the EU member states in the U' budget for peace3keeping makes up as much as 9: per cent of the total amount internationally# Europe has a common alue system, which the world needs# Furthermore, the EU must ser e as a pioneer and press for the regional and sub3regional organisations under the auspices of the U' treaty to play a more acti e role in conflict pre ention, peacekeeping and peace making# %his and other issues concerning reforms of the U' peacekeeping efforts

are currently being dealt with in the U' in the so3called 5$rahimi 0rocess6, and the EU is the most acti e supporter of the U' for a fast implementation of the reform process# *n the case of the EU, the build3up of its own military defence forces might appear paradoxical since the military of most member countries is firmly embedded in 'A%(# 4owe er, there is an actual need for a 5European capacity for autonomous action6, e en though the EU should continuously focus on carrot rather than stick# %he sad experiences from former Yugosla ia and 2oso o alone show this# Europe should ha e the opportunity to act on its own, also in the early phases of conflicts or in larger peace operations with a U' mandate# At the moment we ha e a number of fundamental discussions and disagreements with the U&A regarding the efforts to de elop an international community founded on the rule of law# %he contro ersies regarding the *nternational -riminal -ourt, extradition of persons in terrorist cases which can lead to capital punishment, and latest $ush;s new doctrine on pre enti e attacks all merely ser e as examples in this relation# %he Americans must ha e both support and opposition from Europe# %rue friends also offer opposition, because it is not about anti3 or pro3Americanism but about multilateralism as the path ahead for the EU as a global actor# A stronger EU will also be a stronger U'#