On Monday and Tuesday, a ministerial meeting will take place in Brussels with the somewhat unusual title of the EU Capabilities Commitment Conference. As this is the first EU conference of this nature, it is perhaps understandable that questions are being asked about it, and Ireland's role at it.
Let me put this conference in its proper perspective and describe its significance, both for the EU as a whole and for Ireland. It provides the opportunity for EU countries to indicate formally the resources which they can make available for potential humanitarian or crisis management operations. Ireland's contribution will not in any way affect our long-standing policy of military neutrality.
The conference is one element in the development of a European Security and Defence Policy, which has its basis in the aims of the Amsterdam Treaty, and derives from decisions taken by European heads of state and government at successive European Council meetings in Cologne, Helsinki and Santa Maria de Feira in Portugal. The intention is to make the EU's common foreign and security policy more effective, more coherent and more visible so that Europe can carry out a range of humanitarian, peacekeeping and crisis management tasks, known as Petersberg Tasks.
The resulting European Security and Defence Policy will reinforce the EU's external action through a crisis management capability that includes both military and non-military aspects, fully respecting the principles of the United Nations charter.
The development of this new capability has to be seen against the background of the situation in Europe, which has altered greatly over the past ten years since the end of the Cold War. New patterns of security co-operation involving former adversaries and European states have emerged, and are continuing to evolve. The emerging security architecture emphasises co-operation, not confrontation, and reflects values which have always been at the heart of Irish foreign policy.
We are living in a vastly changed Europe. If a French person, for example, was told 60 years ago that France would one day find common cause with Germany and 13 other sovereign European nations in pursuit of a community of shared values and goals, the response would probably have been one of incredulity.
Twenty years ago, if an American had been informed that, from the very launch pad used by Yuri Gargarin on the occasion of his historic first flight into space, a joint US-Russian team would be embarking upon a key step towards the construction of an international space station, an equally sceptical reply would no doubt have resulted. As recently as 15 years ago, few would have believed that former Soviet satellite countries of Eastern Europe would by now be candidates for membership of the European Union.
Potent images such as these are powerful reminders of how Europe and the world have changed and how they are continuing to change. The EU is engaged in a process of a historic enlargement and, in this context, the development of a European Security and Defence Policy is an important aspect of the ways in which the EU is seeking to play a greater role for peace, stability and security in Europe.
I believe it is essential for Ireland to be centrally involved in helping to shape future changes in the direction that we would wish to see them take. We are actively and constructively participating in greatly improving Europe's response to the humanitarian challenges which can arise, as we saw most recently in the Balkans crisis.
It was as part of this response that the European Council at Helsinki last year agreed a voluntary goal to be able to deploy within 60 days and to sustain for at least one year military forces up to 50-60,000 persons capable of the full range of humanitarian, peacekeeping and crisis management activities, collectively known as Petersberg Tasks.
Ireland's contribution to this voluntary goal was decided by the Government this week. The commitment of up to 850 members of the Defence Forces which was authorised will mainly comprise a light infantry battalion of up to 750 personnel, an Army Ranger Platoon of around 40, in addition to small numbers in headquarters, national support and observer elements.
Participation by members of the Defence Forces in Petersberg Tasks will only arise in clearly defined circumstances, namely when UN authorisation is in place and when the terms of the relevant Irish legislation have been met. Our commitment to the EU Headline Goal is, therefore, fully in keeping with Ireland's approach to overseas peacekeeping and is consistent with our foreign policy traditions.
Also, the offer which we have made will not prejudice in any way the fact that, under the provisions of the Amsterdam Treaty, participation in any Petersberg mission remains a sovereign decision to be taken by the Government. The Government will decide on a case by case basis whether, when and how to commit either troops or other resources.
In parallel, the EU is developing its capabilities for civilian crisis management. Part of this includes the establishment of a goal to provide police in support of peacekeeping operations. Ireland is participating fully in the elaboration of this goal and we are also addressing proposals to develop our collective capacity to respond to the need to strengthen the rule of law which often arises in countries in crisis. This could involve, for example, the provision of appropriately trained legal experts.
These developments in Europe are taking place at a time when the UN, on foot of the recent report of a panel chaired by former Algerian Foreign Minister Brahimi, is now embarking on an overhaul of its own approach to peacekeeping operations. Interestingly, the approach taken in the Brahimi Report has many points in common with the approach taken by the EU on capabilities and rapid reaction.
Both the UN and the EU emphasise the importance of enhancing the capabilities and response time of UN operations, the development of effective command structures, and the recognition of the increased complexity of such operations. These similarities between the approach of the EU and the UN on peacekeeping have been highlighted during recent discussions in Brussels between UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and representatives of the EU.
Another important dimension in the major evolution in UN peacekeeping is the UN's increasing reliance on regional security organisations to support and carry out missions on its behalf. One reason for this is the increased complexity of situations into which peacekeepers can be sent.
There is a growing emphasis on the responsibility of regional organisations for peacekeeping, in partnership with the UN. What the EU is doing in identifying capabilities is in many respects similar to what has been happening at another level at the UN with the UN Standby Arrangements System, in which Ireland participates.
OVERALL, both the EU and the UN are trying to ensure that peacekeeping tasks can be carried out more effectively. In Kosovo and in East Timor, for instance, contributing countries have been able to act under the mandate of the UN. The EU, with its broad membership and its close relationship with neighbouring countries, is developing its crisis management role in this context.
Our involvement in operations where the EU and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) co-operate will only occur where our peacekeepers act under the UN flag. This is the case at present where we are involved in UN-mandated operations such as SFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina and KFOR in Kosovo. In each of these cases our participation in the force was on a voluntary basis.
It was a matter for the Government to decide on each occasion to opt in or opt out as it saw fit. This will be the case in future when responding to requests to participate in Petersberg Tasks. I want to make it clear that a Fianna Fail-led Government will ensure that the current legal position continues to be maintained in the future, namely we will not participate in operations which do not have a UN mandate.
The capability is not an embryonic European Army. Nor does it form any part of a mutual defence arrangement.
In the discussions which have taken place so far I have worked closely with my Cabinet colleagues, particularly the Minister for Defence, Michael Smith, to ensure that Ireland's interests, and the principles to which we have long attached importance, are upheld.
Ireland has benefited from EU membership, and commensurate with our size and resources, we have never shirked our responsibilities as members of the EU and of the wider international community. For over 40 years, our proud tradition of peacekeeping has borne witness to our commitment in this area. Peacekeeping is an integral element of how we see ourselves in the world.
This is not an area of policy where we should seek to isolate ourselves. Ireland will play a positive and constructive role in keeping with our longstanding tradition of involvement in peacekeeping. It is against this background that Ireland will be participating at the Capabilities Commitment Conference in Brussels at which Ireland's offer towards the EU Headline Goal will be formally confirmed.
Brian Cowen is Minister for Foreign Affairs
