Europe moves into the defence business

By Robin Oakley CNN.com European Political Editor

NATO peacekeeping forces in Kosovo keep a watchful eye during a protest

LONDON, England (CNN) -- On November 20, 2000, the European Union embarked on a new phase of its existence, for the first time taking on a military role. Defence and foreign ministers at a "Capability Commitment Conference" in Brussels pledged the troops, ships and aircraft required to launch a new Rapid Reaction Force.

The new force, which will take on conflict resolution, peacekeeping and humanitarian duties where NATO chooses not to get involved, is intended to be up and running by 2003. The aim is to develop the resources and the wider pool to be able to call up 60,000 troops within 60 days and to sustain an operation for at least a year.

Javier Solana, the EU's "high representative" in charge of foreign and security policy, said the pledging session had been a "serious first step" for a European Union determined to play a bigger role in tackling crises. Officials confirmed that availability of more than 100,000 troops, 100 ships and 400 combat aircraft had been promised to the new force.

VIDEO CNN's Chris Burns reports European Union officials promise to build a force of 60,000 troops by 2003 Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     ALSO Q&A on European defence, from CNN.com European Political Editor Robin Oakley

UK and Scandinavian leaders have promised that the new Rapid Reaction Force will not become a European standing army and that no EU nations will be forced to contribute troops to operations in which they do not wish to participate. Contributing units will remain under national control and there will not be a standard uniform, only a common insignia.

Geoff Hoon, the United Kingdom defence secretary, was explicit about the arrangements: "No European army, no European cap badges, no European flags, a British contribution to European co-operation firmly under British control and deployed at the behest of a British minister."

With precise national totals yet to be announced in some cases, EU officials were working on the basis of 13,500 troops from Germany, 12,500 each from the United Kingdom and France, 6,000 each from Italy and Spain, 5,000 from the Netherlands, 3,500 from Greece, 2,000 each from Finland and Austria, 1,500 from Sweden and 1,000 each from Belgium, Ireland and Portugal. Luxembourg was offering 100 troops but Denmark had pledged none.

Since many of the troops involved and much of the equipment to be used will have to be borrowed from the 19-nation NATO organisation, which includes Canada, the United States and other non-EU countries like Turkey, negotiations about precise roles will continue for some time between the 15 EU countries and NATO.

European defence ministers, wary of reactions from Washington, have been emphasising that there will be no duplication of NATO's role and that NATO will remain as Europe's primary defence organisation.

"We must not allow the slightest breath of suspicion to arise that we want to quit NATO," said German Defence Minister Rudolf Scharping.

NATO Secretary-General George Robertson said fears that the new force would undermine the NATO alliance were unfounded. "NATO remains a cornerstone of European security and our only mechanism for collective defence. The Europeans are not seeking to rival that or to duplicate that, but they are saying that the Europeans should do more in their own back yard."

But in the United Kingdom the opposition Conservative party declared that the new organisation would undermine NATO and pledged that it would withdraw Britain from the new force if elected.