EU Battlegroup
An EU Battlegroup or EU combat group is a military formation of the crisis reaction forces of the European Union (EU) that is set up for six months and is highly available. They form the core of an Infantry Association in battalion strength and a guide member. It is intended for initial missions in a crisis region and creates the necessary conditions for further deployment (e.g. within the framework of the UN ).
history
When it became clear that the part of the European Headline Goals agreed in Helsinki in 1999 EU Rapid Reaction Force (EU Rapid Reaction Force) would 2003 not be ready, hit on the Franco-British summit in Le Touquet (4 February 2003) the birth of Idea of an EU battlegroup to support activities of the United Nations. It was then taken up again with reference to the experiences from the EUFOR Artemis mission at a further summit in London in November of the same year. As early as December, the Council of the European Union mandated the further development of the EU's crisis response capability. At the beginning of February 2004, the then Federal Defense Minister Peter Struck signaled an interest in German participation. A so-called “food for thought” paper was submitted to the Political and Security Committee (PSK) . On June 17, 2004, the EU Council decided to set up the EU Battlegroups as part of the implementation of the Headline Goal 2010. In November 2004, the defense ministers of the EU member states concretised these plans by naming the first associations.
As an initial operation capability (IOC), a battlegroup was kept ready for use from 2005; With the full operational capability (FOC) since January 2007, there are now two battlegroups per half-year.
General
A combat group (translation corresponds to the English battlegroup ) is understood to be a non-permanent military task force which, depending on its mission, is composed of elements from different types of troops.
Goal setting
With the battlegroups, the EU wants to improve its ability within the framework of the European security strategy to be able to react quickly to crises and conflicts militarily after a corresponding political decision. Operations should primarily be mandated by the United Nations within the framework of Chapter VII of the UN Charter . In addition to the purely military aspect, the EU battlegroup concept is also important as part of the common security and defense policy as a step towards the creation of a consultation, planning and decision-making mechanism within the EU and with the UN.
Bet options
The composition of the battle group should represent a minimum qualification for effective operations management against the background of the respective mission. Possible deployment options can be found in the entire expanded Petersberg spectrum and range from humanitarian aid , the prevention or defense of hostilities or attacks (possibly already through deterrence in the run-up to a conflict ) to the forcible separation of conflicting parties to the implementation of initial operations for a deployment of To enable follow-up forces, for example United Nations peacekeeping forces.
Possible locations are countries that have collapsed or have been affected by the state collapse. This is a reaction to a new type of war, the so-called New Wars, which have formed on the fringes of the former empires, especially Great Britain and France. Examples are Africa, the Caucasus or Afghanistan. The main aim here is to separate the conflicting parties from one another in order to deepen the peace process.
Framework
The EU Battlegroups should be ready for action within 10 days and in the respective country of deployment after another five days. In order to be able to guarantee this short term, two battlegroups are kept on standby for a period of six months. Then other forces take over the following rotation.
When posted, the forces should be able to operate independently for 30 days. Afterwards they are to be replaced by other, possibly regional forces. If necessary, this period can be extended to 120 days with appropriate support.
As a planning guide, a 6000 km radius around Brussels was set for possible operations, with a possible focus above all in crisis areas in Africa and the Middle East .
The EU battlegroups are financed by the troop providers, i.e. the respective nations. There are currently no permanent multinational European armed forces, and there are no plans to do so.
Strategic leadership
At the strategic level, the political - and thus the highest - leadership is carried out by the Political and Security Committee (PSK) of the EU.
From a military point of view, responsibility at this level lies with an Operation Commander , who is determined for the required period of deployment. This is supported by an OHQ, which grows up from one of five core staff (in France, Great Britain, Italy, Greece, Germany) provided under national responsibility. The core staff grows up through the national portion of the later OHQ through multinational reinforcement through so-called primary augmentee to the core staff . This core staff grows up in the further course according to the requirements of the operation to become an OHQ. Further so-called additional augmentees are used for this purpose. In Germany, the German operational command for intervention forces in Ulm took over this ability in 2009 from the operational command of the Bundeswehr in Potsdam, but continues to use its infrastructure. The OHQ is not part of the actual EU Battlegroup.
Force dispositive
The overall force disposition is known as a force package . It consists of the operational management element, the actual battlegroup and other assigned support staff.
Operational leadership
The management at the operational level is carried out by the Force Commander and his staff (Force Headquarters - FHQ). This is usually provided by the nation from which the infantry battalion emerges. The German multinational command operational command in Ulm is intended for this task.
Combat group
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Basically, the core element of an EU battlegroup is a reinforced infantry unit in battalion strength. Further components are combat support and operational support forces, such as engineer , repair, transport, NBC defense , telecommunications and air defense forces .
The operations commander can decide on the detailed skills that he needs for the respective mission. Due to the possible specialization of the forces involved (for example for operations in urban areas, mountains, desert, jungle) or their composition, e.g. in the case of amphibious units, a battlegroup can already have a special ability in advance - and thus a suitability for a special Range of use - to show.
The total strength (including the FHQ) is approximately 1,500.
Support staff
Since the organic capacities of the EU Battlegroups are very limited (they do not cover strategic transport, for example), additional forces are assigned. Medical , logistics and special forces deployed to expand or supplement the range of capabilities as well as parts of the air or naval forces are referred to as operational or strategic enablers .
Multinationality
It is rare for a single nation to provide all the forces for a rotation (previously: Great Britain , France , Italy , Spain ). The composition of the forces is usually multinational, so the individual elements are reported by several nations. In addition to the member states of the EU, possible troop contributors are also countries at the invitation of a member or as candidates for membership.
When planning and coordinating the preparation and deployment, a nation is defined as a so-called framework nation in multinational associations and supported by representatives of the other armed forces involved.
Examples of multinational associations are the Hispanic-Italian Amphibious Battlegroup (BG I / 2006: Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal), the Nordic Battlegroup (BG I / 2008 Sweden, Finland, Norway, Estonia, Ireland), the HELBROC Battlegroup (BG II / 2007: Greece, Romania, Cyprus, Bulgaria), the Battlegroup II / 2008 (Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain).
In addition, French President Emmanuel Macron has proposed another combat force between Germany and France, as well as Great Britain, which should be deployable faster than other battle groups and should operate beyond the other defense cooperation within the EU.
When considering the EU Battlegroups critically, as this is an instrument for promoting multinational cooperation, the (security) political integrative dimension must be taken into account in addition to the purely military operational value.
Participating EU Member States
Participating non-EU member states
-
Norway (NATO member) -
Turkey (NATO member) -
North Macedonia (NATO member) -
Ukraine (non-NATO member) -
United Kingdom (member of NATO)
EU member states without participation
List of EU Battlegroups
Periods of use
Nations providing troops for the respective deployment periods:
| Period of use | participating nations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 01-06 | Great Britain |
| France | ||
| 07-12 | Italy | |
| no | ||
| 2006 | 01-06 | France, Germany |
| Spain, Italy, Greece, Portugal (" Amphibious Battlegroup ") | ||
| 07-12 | France, Germany, Belgium | |
| no | ||
| 2007 | 01-06 | Germany, Netherlands, Finland (" Battlegroup 107 ") |
| France, Belgium | ||
| 07-12 | Italy, Hungary, Slovenia | |
| Greece, Romania, Cyprus, Bulgaria (" Balkan Battlegroup ") | ||
| 2008 | 01-06 | Sweden, Finland, Norway, Estonia, Ireland (" Nordic Battlegroup ") |
| Spain, Germany, France, Portugal | ||
| 07-12 | Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain | |
| Great Britain | ||
| 2009 | 01-06 | Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece |
| no | ||
| 07-12 | Czech Republic, Slovakia | |
| France, Belgium,? | ||
| 2010 | 01-06 | Poland, Germany, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia |
| Great Britain, Netherlands | ||
| 07-12 | Italy, Romania, Turkey | |
| Spain | ||
| 2011 | 01-06 | Battlegroup 107 |
| Sweden, Finland, Norway, Estonia, Ireland | ||
| 07-12 | Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Cyprus | |
| Portugal, Spain, France and Italy or France alone | ||
| 2012 | 01-06 | France, Belgium, Luxembourg (OHQ = Paris Mont-Valérien) |
| no | ||
| 07-12 | Italy, Slovenia, Hungary | |
| German-Czech-Austrian battlegroup | ||
| 2013 | 01-06 | Poland, Germany, France (" Battlegroup Weimar ") |
| Vacant | ||
| 07-12 | Great Britain, Sweden, Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania | |
| Belgium | ||
| 2014 | 01-06 | Balkan Battlegroup |
| 07-12 | Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain | |
| Spain, Netherlands, Macedonia | ||
| 2015 | 01-06 | Nordic Battlegroup |
| 07-12 | Belgium, France | |
| 2016 | 01-06 | Visegrád Battlegroup |
| 07-12 | German-Czech-Austrian battlegroup | |
| 2017 | 01-06 | Italian-Hungarian-Slovenian battlegroup |
| Franco-Belgian Battlegroup | ||
| 07-12 | Hispanic-Italian Amphibious Battlegroup | |
| 2018 | 01-06 | Balkan Battlegroup |
| Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg | ||
| 07-12 | EUBG 2014 II | |
| 2019 | 01-06 | French battlegroup |
| Spanish battlegroup | ||
| 07-12 | Visegrád Battlegroup | |
| British Battlegroup | ||
| 2020 | 01-06 | Balkan Battlegoup, Serbia, Ukraine |
| Italian battlegroup | ||
| 07-12 | German-Czech-Dutch-Austrian battlegroup | |
| Hispanic-Italian Amphibious Battlegroup | ||
Relationship to ESDP, ESS and NATO
The establishment of European crisis reaction forces increases the EU's willingness to act and, above all, its ability to act. It now has its own instruments for military intervention in regional conflicts, in which almost all EU member states participate (see ESDP ). The aims of the ESS are being pursued , including regional conflict prevention, in order to prevent or counteract a possible state collapse.
It is often said that the EU Battlegroups compete with the NATO Response Force (NRF). Although the two concepts are not directly comparable, since the forces dispositions evidently differ primarily in the existing capabilities (for example, the NRF includes air and naval forces), their size and, ultimately, in the range of operations - which in the case of NRF is considerably more extensive - a consideration of the Basic ideas that they do not contradict each other, but rather complement each other:
- One of the objectives of the NRF concept (especially from the US perspective) is precisely the improvement of European military capabilities . Thus - at least superficially - the establishment of the EU battlegroups is ultimately a step for Europe to be able to make better contributions to NATO operational contingents or, if necessary, to relieve NATO by taking over smaller operations.
- The Berlin Plus Agreement will provide mutual support for both instruments without duplication , although NATO will primarily make its resources available.
- Only limited critical capabilities affect the NRF, EU Battlegroup and ongoing operations alike. In particular, the strategic transport to an operational area is a fundamental problem that both NATO and the EU are working on, including within the framework of the Strategic Airlift Interim Solution (SALIS), with special consideration of the two concepts.
- Another common ground and at the same time a particularly serious unsolved problem is the requirement for the units to be able to be deployed quickly , taking into account the lengthy political processes for releasing these forces by the respective states or the decision-making bodies in NATO or the EU. Germany in particular is of outstanding importance on this issue, as it regularly makes considerable contributions to both concepts and at the same time is extremely restrictive when it comes to the political release of armed forces .
See also
Web links
- Claudia Major, Christian Mölling: EU Battlegroups. Balance sheet and options for the further development of European crisis reaction forces , study by the Science and Politics Foundation , August 2010.
- Christian Mölling: EU Battlegroups , discussion paper of the Science and Politics Foundation , FG 2/2007/05, March 2007.
- Johann Fischer: The European Battle Groups , from: Troop Service , Volume 310, Issue 4/2009.
- Ronja Kempin: France and the EU Battle Groups , discussion paper of the Science and Politics Foundation, FG-3 / DP 01/05, May 2004.
- Anna Barcikowska: EU Battlegroups - ready to go? , Retrospective from 2013.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Anna Barcikowska: EU Battlegroups - ready to go? In: European Union Institute for Security Studies. November 2013, accessed on November 6, 2018 .
- ^ A b Gerrard Quille: The EU Battlegroups. In: European Parliament. Retrieved November 6, 2018 .
- ↑ Food for thought paper (PDF, 270 kB, English)
- ^ Enhancing the rapid reaction capability of the United Nations: The options. (PDF, 93 kB, English) ( Memento of the original from October 10, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b EU Battlegroups - EEAS - European External Action Service - European Commission. Retrieved November 6, 2018 .
- ↑ Nordic Battle Group ( Memento of the original from July 8, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Nordic Battlegroup - svenskledd styrka till EU: s snabbinsatsförmåga ( Swedish ) Försvarsmakten. Archived from the original on August 23, 2006. Retrieved August 26, 2006.
- ^ The EU Battlegroup Concept and the Nordic Battlegroup Government office of Sweden
- ↑ Greece prepares military exercise with Bulgaria, Cyprus, Romania . EUbusiness. November 22, 2005. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved July 1, 2007.
- ↑ Description of the EU Battlegroup (PDF, 60 kB, English)
- ↑ EU combat force: Merkel joins Macron's plans for intervention army . In: Spiegel Online . June 3, 2018 ( spiegel.de [accessed November 6, 2018]).
- ↑ Future of the EU: Merkel reacts to Macron's EU reform plans . In: ZEIT ONLINE . ( zeit.de [accessed on November 6, 2018]).
- ↑ a b c d e Enter the EU Battlegroups (PDF; 1 MB) ISS ; Chaillot Paper no.97; Feb 2007, p.88
- ↑ Latvian contingent takes up duties at the EU Battlegroup ( Memento of the original from January 19, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Finns taking part in exercise for tri-nation EU Battle Group in Germany hs.fi 4 June 2007
- ↑ ORF Chronicle
- ^ Structure of the EUBG 2016-2
- ↑ a b c Each Baltic State to Contribute at Least 50 Troops to Nordic Battle Group . Retrieved on February 6, 2013. ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Nordic Battlegroup - svenskledd styrka till EU: s snabbinsatsförmåga ( Swedish ) Försvarsmakten. Archived from the original on August 23, 2006. Retrieved August 26, 2006.
- ^ The EU Battle Group Concept and the Nordic Battle Group Government office of Sweden
- ↑ Greece prepares military exercise with Bulgaria, Cyprus, Romania . EUbusiness. November 22, 2005. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved July 1, 2007.
- ^ Czechs, Slovaks start preparing joint military unit . Czech Republic: The Official Website of the Czech Republic. July 20, 2006. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved on August 26, 2006.
- ↑ Infographic EU-Battlegroup en Nederlandse deelname ( nl ) In: Defensie.nl . Ministry of Defense of the Netherlands. June 27, 2014. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
- ↑ EUBG ( nl ) In: Mil.be . Ministry of Defense of Belgium. 2014. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
- ↑ Technical Agreement of EU Weimar Battle Group signed. ( Memento of the original from August 11, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. mon.gov.pl
- ↑ Nowa Wyszehradzka Grupa Bojowa: Polska na czele ( Polish ) March 7, 2013. Accessed March 10, 2013.
- ↑ V4 invites Ukraine to set up joint military unit (en) . In: Ukrinform , Ukrainian Government, June 4, 2014. Accessed July 8, 2015.
- ↑ EU Battlegroup. globalsecurity.org, November 25, 2016, accessed January 15, 2017 .
- ↑ Finns taking part in exercise for tri-nation EU battle group in Germany hs.fi 04/06/07
- ↑ Bundeswehr website
