Issue 34 - Council of the European Union
Transcription
Issue 34 - Council of the European Union
Issue # 34 - 17 December 2010 Ordre du jour chargé pour le Conseil Affaires étrangères du 13 décembre Le 13 décembre dernier, les ministres des Affaires étrangères étaient réunis à Bruxelles sous la Présidence de la Haute Représentante Catherine Ashton. Parmi les nombreux sujets à l’ordre du jour, la Côte d’Ivoire, le processus de paix au Proche-Orient, le Soudan. HR Ashton au Conseil Affaires étrangères, 13 décembre La Représentante spéciale de l’UE pour le Soudan, Rosalind Marsden, a exposé les options concernant le plan d’intervention pour le Soudan, mis en oeuvre dans le cadre de la préparation du référendum sur l’autodétermination du Sud-Soudan qui se tiendra le 9 janvier. Le Conseil s’est engagé à soutenir le Soudan afin de promouvoir de manière durable la paix, la stabilité et la prospérité pour toute la population soudanaise. L’UE a dépêché des experts qui suivent le déroulement du processus d’inscription des électeurs et une mission d’observation électorale sera déployée prochainement. Le Conseil a par ailleurs débattu de la situation en Somalie après la formation du nouveau gouvernement à Mogadiscio. Il a examiné les différents aspects de l’engagement global de l’UE dans le soutien apporté au gouvernement fédéral de transition, y compris les deux opérations militaires de l’UE : EUTM Somalie, qui a accompli avec succès la moitié de son mandat, et l’opération de lutte contre les actes de piraterie, EUNAVFOR-Atalante. La situation politique en Afghanistan au lendemain des élections a également été abordée par le Conseil, notamment les domaines spécifiques dans lesquels l’UE peut porter ses efforts, ses principales priorités étant le secteur de la justice, les droits fondamentaux, et notamment les droits des femmes, la réforme du service civil, la réforme électorale et la réforme de la police, dans laquelle EUPOL Afghanistan joue un rôle important. Concernant la situation au Proche-Orient, dans le cadre de son approche globale, comprenant notamment les missions EUPOL COPPS et EUBAM Rafah, l’UE est disposée à étendre son aide à l’amélioration des infrastructures aux points de passage, à acheter et à installer les équipements nécessaires et aussi à former le personnel palestinien chargé de la gestion des frontières et des points de passage pour qu’il puisse en assurer le bon fonctionnement. Au cours du dîner, la Haute Représentante et les ministres ont poursuivi les discussions engagées sur les relations de l’UE avec ses partenaires stratégiques, en prévision de la présentation de la Haute Représentante lors du Conseil européen qui se tient les 16 et 17 décembre et sur la base des documents de réflexion relatifs à la Chine, à la Russie et aux États-Unis. Les discussions ont également porté sur les priorités de la politique étrangère pour 2011. Sur la politique de sécurité et de défense commune (PSDC), le Conseil a approuvé les recommandations contenues dans le rapport sur les enseignements et les meilleures pratiques pour la prise en compte des droits de l’homme et de la question de l’égalité entre les femmes et les hommes dans les opérations militaires et les missions civiles menées dans le cadre de la PSDC. Parmi ces recommandations figurent notamment : la prise en compte de ces questions dans la planification et l’évaluation des missions, une formation adéquate, l’amélioration de l’équilibre hommes/femmes au sein du personnel déployé, la necessité d’informer davantage sur les aspects des missions et opérations relatifs aux droits de l’homme et à l’égalité des sexes et d’encourager une participation active des femmes dans les négociations et l’activité politique. Le Conseil a également approuvé le document sur le développement capacitaire civil et militaire de l’UE au-delà de 2010, et a pris note du rapport final sur l’objectif global civil à l’horizon 2010. Le Conseil a par ailleurs approuvé le deuxième rapport sur les progrès réalisés par les États membres en vue de faciliter le déploiement de personnel civil dans le cadre de missions PSDC. Foreign Affairs Council conclusions Conclusions du Conseil Affaires étrangères Council conclusions on Sudan Council conclusions on the Middle East Peace Process HR Ashton participated in the European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg HR Ashton briefed European Parliament on the NATO Lisbon Summit in Strasbourg on 15 December 2010 HR Ashton on the EU’s Annual Human Rights Report at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 15 December 2010 EUNAVFOR-Atalanta enters its 3rd year as an extension to 2012 is confirmed 8 December 2010 marked the 2nd anniversary of the start of EUNAVFOR-Atalanta, the European Union’s Naval Force counter-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden and Somali Basin. The anniversary coincided with the confirmation by the EU that the operation would be extended until December 2012. EUNAVFOR ship HNLMS Amsterdam escorts WFP chartered MV Captain Said Over the past two years, EUNAVFOR’s primary mission has been to protect United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) vessels against pirate attack by providing close escort to the ships carrying much needed humanitarian aid to Somalia. Since the start of the operation, 98 WFP vessels have been escorted of which 90 have been protected by EUNAVFOR units. The African Union Mission in Somalia’s (AMISOM) logistic vessels also come under the protective arm of EUNAVFOR with 77 successful escorts being achieved to date. The Operational Commander, Major General Buster Howes said: “Having been tasked to protect WFP vessels, I am proud to say that, since we arrived, not a single WFP ship has been successfully pirated and that we are now providing escorts to an organisation that is providing humanitarian aid to 1.8 million people per day and that has so far delivered nearly 470,000 tons of much needed food to the Somali people.” The Naval Force is also tasked to protect other vulnerable shipping and to help deter, prevent and repress pirate attacks. This last task is considerable and is the one which, with an area of over three million square kilometres equating to the size of Western Europe to patrol, is proving to be the most challenging. Despite the best efforts of EUNAVFOR, there are still currently 22 pirated vessels and 532 hostages in the hands of pirates off the coast of EUNAVFOR escorting AMISOM Somalia. “There is no getting away from the fact that strategically, a naval presence is not deterring the pirates. The business model that they have adopted is too productive and the rewards simply too huge for them to be deterred from their activities. The solution has always and will always lie ashore. We will continue to ‘hold the line’ at sea whilst the international community, led by the EU, adopts a more comprehensive approach ashore’ he added. In the Gulf of Aden, the establishment and regular policing of the internationally recommended transit corridor (IRTC) by EUNAVFOR ships and aircraft has had a significant effect on the number of successful attacks with a 54% reduction in the number of piratings between 2009 and 2010. In the Somali Basin, the EUNAVFOR has also had considerable success in disrupting pirate attacks with some 75 pirate action groups apprehended since the start of the operation. As a result of its close cooperation with regional governments such as Kenya and The Republic of the Seychelles, 92 suspected pirates captured by EUNAVFOR have entered a legal system, with 43 being convicted to date. The continuing close relationship with industry and the application of the much-publicised best management practices (BMP) are particularly worthy of note with instances of merchant vessels defeating pirate attacks by using BMPs become increasingly common. Latest figures suggest that since 19 November 2010, 15 merchant ships have successfully defended themselves against attacks using the advice provided by the merchant industry and EUNAVFOR. The message from the EUNAVFOR is clear: the merchant community should consider themselves to be on the front line of defence and must implement BMP. As EUNAVFOR - Atalanta goes on into 2012, the comprehensive approach of the EU also continues with the EU Training Mission for Somalia (EUTM Somalia) and the work carried out by the EU Delegation in Kenya for Somalia. EUTM and Somali soldiers in the Bihanga camp, Uganda www.eunavfor.eu consilium.europa.eu/eunavfor-somalie EUNAVFOR Force Headquarters handover ceremony On 14 December, at a ceremony in Djibouti on board the EUNAVFOR French warship FGS De Grasse, Rear Admiral Philippe Coindreau, who has been the Force Commander of EUNAVFOR-Atalanta for the last four months, handed over to Rear Admiral Juan Rodriguez (Spain). He will lead the multinational Force Headquarters onboard the EUNAVFOR Spanish warship SPS Patino for the next four months. Handover of the Force command between Rear Admiral Coindreau and Rear Admiral Rodriguez “In 2010, 72% of pirate attacks have failed, 81% since August. Those results are due to the combination of EUNAVFOR’s action, the application of new concepts of operations, the use, by the maritime community, of systematic security measures on merchant vessels and high-quality cooperation with other naval forces and independent Navies”, said French Rear Admiral Philippe Coindreau. He continued: “Admiral, the responsibility of continuing the mission will soon be in your hands. I am convinced that your command will be marked by significant and fruitful actions”. European Police Mission supports Afghanistan to fight corruption European Defence Agency helicopter tactics symposium The Afghan efforts to fight corruption are strongly supported by the European Police Mission in Afghanistan. EUPOL has established and manages an anti-corruption project office within the Afghan Ministry of Interior where various anticorruption projects and training modules are coordinated. Helicopter operators from 16 EU Member States gathered for the first EDA Helicopter tactics symposium in Luxembourg on 15-16 December. The symposium forms part of the EDA Helicopter Training Programme (HTP). The HTP is at the end of its first year of implementation, aiming at annual delivery of two helicopter exercises and one tactics symposium. The overall aim is to provide EDA’s participating member states with training opportunities in order to increase their helicopter capability for crisis management operations. The establishment of six regional mobile anti-corruption teams, now working throughout Afghanistan to support the operational capability of the Inspector General of the Ministry of Interior can be seen as an important step in effectively fighting corruption. The six mobile teams, and 300 Ministry of Interior Inspectors, have been trained in basic anti-corruption investigation techniques. Read further Publications - EU Institute for Security Studies L’UE et l’Afrique : les défis de la cohérence Économie, gouvernance, sécurité et multilatéralisme se présentent comme les quatre côtés d’un carré dans lequel évoluent les relations entre Européens et Africains. Malgré les crises, les tendances sont là : croissance forte, nouveaux investisseurs, accélération prévisible des mouvements et des migrations, construction d’une jurisprudence et d’une architecture continentale de sécurité. Lire le Cahier de Chaillot Global Governance 2025: at a critical juncture Global governance – the collective management of common problems at the international level – is at a critical juncture. Although global governance institutions have racked up many successes since they were developed after the Second World War, the growing number of issues on the international agenda, and their complexity, is outpacing the ability of international organisations and national governments to cope. Read further Seasons greetings! Bonnes fêtes de fin d’année ! The next issue of EU Security and Defence news will be out at the beginning of January 2011. We would like to wish you a happy new year! Le prochain numéro du bulletin hebdomadaire sur la PSDC sera publié début janvier 2011. Nous vous souhaitons de joyeuses fêtes de fin d’année ! © European Union 2010 The symposium was hosted by Luxembourg, expressing its strong support of the EDA Helicopter Training Programme. The aim of the two days event was to share experiences and best practices from operations and to help shape future exercises within the HTP to ensure that they reflect the real life challenges identified and match the participating Member States’ training requirements. More EULEX: Kosovo Police’s key role during elections “EULEX will mentor, monitor and advise the Kosovo Police on this very important day,” EULEX Head, Bout de Marnhac, said on 9 December during a visit to the Kosovo police regional police Headquarters in Mitrovica to discuss KP’s election preparations for the 12 December balloting. EULEX Head of Mission Bout de Marnhac visiting Lipjan/Lipljan police station Kosovo Police General Director Reshat Maliqi thanked both EULEX and his police officers from the Mitrovica region on their close cooperation. “We are working together. I think that we can achieve our goals as police officers – to help the citizens and to provide security during election day in Mitrovica,” said Maliqi. More Upcoming activities 16-17 December - HR participates in the European Council, Brussels 6 - 7 January 2011 - HR travels to Hungary for bilateral visits and to meet the Hungarian EU Council presidency CSDP Newsletter - issue 10 - Special issue - ESDP@10 EU Security and Defence on YouTube www.esdp10years.eu PRESS - EU Council Secretariat Tel: +32 (0)2 281 7640 / 6319 - [email protected] TV Newsroom - www.consilium.europa.eu/csdp - www.consilium.europa.eu/psdc EU external action web site: eeas.europa.eu - For information on the EU CSDP agencies, click here Les avis exprimés ne peuvent en aucun cas être considérés comme une position officielle du Conseil de l’Union européenne. The views expressed are not to be taken in any way to represent the official position of the Council of the European Union.