EU military force in Africa

The European Union took one more step to establish its own force independent og NATO as, under the leadership of France, it decided to send 1'400 peacekeeping troops to Congo in what would be the bloc's second military operation and its first in Africa. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana was optimistic that a provisional decision to back the French-led mission would be taken by ambassadors of the 15 nations. At least half of the force would be French and the rest would come from a small group of EU nations and others, including Canada. . EU foreign ministers agreed last month to consider supporting an emergency UN force in eastern Congo, where inter-ethnic fighting has killed hundreds and left thousands homeless and hungry. France has already sent a military reconnaissance team to the Bunia region of the former Belgian colony. The three-month EU mandate in Congo would be to provide a "bridging force" until shortly after the arrival of Bangladeshi UN forces in mid-August. It would ensure security at the airport, in Bunia and at refugee camps. There was some disquiet in Madrid that the EU had not sought support for its mission from NATO. Some said NATO backing was simply not needed for the operation. But others suspected that France was seeking to demonstrate that the EU can stand on its own two feet, independent of the US-led alliance. "This looks very much like a flag-waving operation for the EU," said one diplomat. "The French have set up a coalition of the willing and now they're calling it an EU operation - they have created an EU operation by stealth". (Reuters 6/4/03). The inclusion of Canada was a slap at the US, since it implied that Canada, notably French Canada, has closer relations with Europe than with the US.

Ronald Hilton - 6/8/03