The previously touted U.S.-EU The security and defense dialogue is scheduled to start in early 2022, U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Brinken and EU Chief Diplomat Joseph Borrell announced in a statement on Friday (December 3).
It was first announced at their EU-U.S. joint summit in June, The first meeting is scheduled to be held in early 2022 and will be attended by the US State Department and the Department of Defense and the European External Action Agency (EEAS) And the European Commission and the European Union defense Agency (EDA).
Hervé Bléjean, Director-General of the EU’s Military Staff, previewed the announcement at a think tank event in Washington on Thursday (December 2).
Bléjean said that possible areas of cooperation will include joint efforts to address cyber threats, climate change, and disruptive technologies.
In their joint statement, Brinken and Borrell Acknowledge the “importance of a stronger and more capable European defense that contributes to global and transatlantic security” and “To deal with common security challenges is in line with the depth of our bonds, common values and common interests.”
This move is also at a time when the West and Moscow are highly tense due to the EU-Belarus border situation and Russia’s build-up of troops in Ukraine and its surrounding areas. The United States and the European Union have adopted increasingly convergent views on the threat posed. By China.
They also reviewed the “need to develop coherent, complementary and interoperable capabilities” and “Support the United States to participate as fully as possible in the EU’s defense initiatives.”
In early May, member states agreed to allow the United States, Norway and Canada Military mobility program for joining the European UnionSeen as the “silver bullet” of EU-NATO defense cooperation, it aims to ensure the seamless flow of military equipment throughout the EU in response to crises.
Last month, they also asked the European Defense Agency (EDA) to start negotiations with the leaders of the Pentagon on an agreement that will promote cooperation on joint military projects under the European Union’s Permanent Structural Cooperation (PESCO).
Although the two diplomats Welcoming the decision, they also Expressed “a joint commitment to seek an end to the negotiations as soon as possible.”
PESCO currently includes a total of 60 joint military projects aimed at improving the EU’s key defense capabilities in the next ten years, including air, space, training capabilities, and drone technology.
According to defense experts, many projects can fill the same capability gaps identified so far by NATO planners and complement the capacity building of military alliances.
In September, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen (Ursula von der Leyen) Contributed to a stronger European defense, Stating that the EU needs to improve its military capabilities, but did not make clear recommendations, especially on how this will affect relations with NATO.
The European side is also currently formulating the so-called strategic compass, the EU’s new military strategy document, and plans to hold a European defense summit during the first half of 2022 during France’s presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Efforts to promote Europe’s “strategic autonomy” were boosted during Trump’s administration and angered France after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and Biden’s accidental announcement of an Indo-Pacific security agreement with Britain and Australia.
After the Afghanistan crisis, EU member states discussed proposals for initial entry of power and the possibility of temporary military cooperation between interested EU member states independent of the United States and NATO if necessary.
However, the EU faces differences on how far the integration of security and defense should go. The main reason is that Eastern European countries worry that the EU’s latest weapons and power development efforts may compete with the alliance.
Brinken and Borrell Commitment to “continue working Work together to raise the level of ambition for NATO-EU cooperation to further strengthen this mutually reinforcing key strategic partnership”.
They also reaffirmed their “unswerving support for the strong NATO-EU cooperation”, which was a commitment made in the organization’s 2016 and 2018 joint statements.
The new EU-NATO Joint Declaration was originally scheduled to be submitted before the end of the year, but it may be postponed to early February022, Aims to become a key compass for future cooperation.
An EU official told EURACTIV: “It is important to support and recognize the U.S.’s EU defense autonomy, which shows that they are eager to cooperate with us.”
The official added: “This is also a signal to all those who doubt the EU’s strategic autonomy and defense. They believe that the EU’s strategic autonomy and defense are in contradiction with the United States or NATO.”
[Edited by Benjamin Fox]
