EU commando forces will not require the unanimous backing of EU member states to deploy, under new plans to build a rapid reaction force by 2025, The Telegraph has revealed.
In a leaked report drawn up by MEPs, the EU intends to create a 5,000-person response force, known as the Rapid Deployment Capacity, ready to be deployed in the event of emergencies such as the evacuation of civilians and diplomatic staff.
The botched Western withdrawal from Afghanistan was a major motivating factor for the report. EU policy chiefs hope the RDC will operate on land, sea, and air on a rotating 12-month basis.
The Left group was the only parliamentary faction to oppose the proposals. ID and ECR MEPs lent cautious support on the basis that NATO should not be replaced by this new EU task force. Italian Lega MEPs abstained from endorsing the report, objecting to Europe’s aid to the war effort in Ukraine.
Policymakers hope the force will be available to be deployed within a 5-10 day window and operate independently of NATO. The EU has attempted to forge its own strategic autonomy in the aftermath of the conflict in Ukraine, with many believing that the bloc has been sidestepped in importance by NATO.
Previous attempts at a European reaction force in the form of EU Battlegroups have been criticised as haphazard and have never been deployed. Under the leaked plan, Brussels would be able to mobilise the Rapid Deployment Capacity (RDC) with qualified majority voting, instead of the unanimous support currently needed for EU Battlegroups.
Speaking to The European Conservative, Professor Bill Durodie of MCC Brussels criticised the lack of national engagement in the plans and warned that the new RDC could lead to creating two tiers within the EU.
By allowing for qualified majority voting in the area of security, the EU would effectively be laying the ground for a state within the state—that allows the bigger players to determine military action for all.
The plans for a rapid reaction force have the support of France and Germany and will be financed through the European Peace Facility (EPF) which has been used to bankroll European support for the Ukrainian war effort.
The Rapid Deployment Capacity is Brussels’ attempt to enter the big leagues when it comes to defence. Without learning the lessons from the bloc’s crippling lack of coherency when it comes to military affairs, it is unlikely that the RDC will be anything more than a showpiece for Brussels policymakers—one that underlines an unwelcome move towards federalisation.
