FRANCE:FRANCE'S DESIRE to strengthen the EU's independent military capabilities yesterday received strong endorsement from British foreign secretary David Miliband, writes Patrick Smyth, Foreign Editor
Insisting that Nato would remain the cornerstone of European defence, Mr Miliband argued, however, that "as the Balkans wars in the 1990s demonstrated, unless Europe can develop its own capabilities it will be consigned always to wait impotently until the US and Nato are ready and able to intervene".
In a wide-ranging speech on Europe to a London meeting organised by the magazine Progress, Mr Miliband admitted that the "Irish referendum had shaken the confidence of European leaders" and spoke of the challenge of the "reinvention of the EU" to show citizens it was addressing the issues of direct concern to them.
"The next step for Ireland is for the Irish Government. But it is undeniable that the Irish people have a message for us," he said. "Beyond the particular merits or demerits of the Lisbon Treaty, there is a bigger question: for all the enthusiasm of the political elites in Europe and for all the desire of neighbouring countries to join, why is Europe a seemingly unpopular cause?"
Mr Miliband said the answer is that the EU has an unclear mission; that Europe's decision- making, of necessity in an international organisation based on sovereign nation states, is rooted in quiet compromises between diplomats, not the public clash of ideas between politicians; and that voters want the EU to address real policy issues that affect them directly, not institutional tinkering.
"There is an irony in the Irish referendum result here. The rejection of Lisbon must in part have reflected exasperation with seven years of institutional debate. Yet the contents of the Lisbon Treaty promise to end the debate about institutional structure for the foreseeable future."
The Irish vote raised "the fundamental question: what is the purpose of the European Union now? It is not obvious to the people of Europe?". The old answer that it represented an end to war in Europe is no longer sufficient, he said.
Yet, whenever Europe was propelled forward by great projects like enlargement, the single market, or the euro, it was "effective at reaching conclusions and a force for great good", he added.
"The trouble we have today is not that the EU has failed. It is the opposite. The problem is that it has succeeded," and its people now took these successes for granted, he said. "When the prospect of war seems more remote, people ask: what is the point now?" The environment, organised crime, foreign and defence policy, terrorism and migration are key areas of public concern which the EU needed to show it could address, Mr Miliband said.
"It used to be the case that national government was the bastion of order, the front line of the citizen's defence against the risk of armed conflict and economic turmoil.
"That is no longer true. Risks have gone global. There is no national solution to the credit crunch, to oil and gas insecurity, to climate change, to terrorism. These are all questions of protection and they are all international by their very nature."
Security is critically important, the foreign secretary said. "Here the threat no longer emanates from within Europe. It lies beyond our borders, in the ungoverned spaces which give rise to terrorism and organised crime. Or in the conflicts which fuel migration and threaten global peace and security.
"Europe's soft power has already transformed central and eastern Europe.
"The prospect of membership is driving political and economic reform in Turkey and the western Balkans. The desire to join or to be associated with the biggest single market in the world is strong, and gives us huge influence. And it is all too easy to lose sight of the fact that the enlargement of the EU, both achieved and prospective, is what has driven the institutional reforms of the Lisbon Treaty.
"But the countries of Europe need to be better at using their hard power. That is why I strongly welcome President Sarkozy's proposals to reintegrate France into Nato's military structure and support his call for the EU to play a greater role in crisis management.
"Nato is and will remain the cornerstone of European defence. Whether in Afghanistan or Kosovo, we need it to work as effectively as it can, which is why we want France to play a full role. But as the Balkans wars in the 1990s demonstrated, unless Europe can develop its own capabilities it will be consigned always to wait impotently until the US and Nato are ready and able to intervene."