THE EUROPEAN – SECURITY AND DEFENCE UNION
There is a potential which could be a core military asset for the European Union
The Eurocorps, a highly operational multinational headquarters not used by the EU Interview with Lieutenant General Olivier de Bavinchove, Commanding General, Eurocorps, Strasbourg
The European: General, you have been Commander of the Eurocorps in Strasbourg since 1 July 2011. Just a few weeks ago you brought your troops back safe and sound from a one-year stint in Afghanistan. You were the Chief of Staff of the ISAF mission, as the Commander of a European Army Corps that was conducting its fourth NATO mission. But what about the EU? General de Bavinchove: Born from a French-German political initiative in 1992, the Eurocorps is a rapid reaction corps that is certified as such by NATO and meets the European Union’s requirements. The Eurocorps is fully dedicated to operations and can cover a broad spectrum of missions ranging from stabilisation to coercion. It can be deployed for UN, EU or NATO operations. A so-called SACEUR Agreement was signed with NATO back in January 1993 in order to make the Eurocorps available to the North Atlantic Alliance, which certified it as a rapid reaction corps in 2002. Its deployment in Afghanistan in 2012 confirmed its operational status and gave it credibility in the eyes of NATO. The European: But there has been no such cooperation between the Eurocorps and the EU. General de Bavinchove: You are right. The Eurocorps was indeed deployed four times with NATO, partially or as a whole in Bosnia (1998), in Kosovo (2000) and Afghanistan (2004 and 2012). In 2007 and 2010 it manned the core of the NATO Response Force (NRF). It is true that Eurocorps has never been used by the EU: but it is quite ready for that. Moreover, if you look closely at the ISAF mission you will see that all EU member states were involved in this 50-nation coalition. The European: But the 1993 agreement with NATO remains fully valid, whereas the agreement signed the same year between the Eurocorps and WEU has vanished, following WEU’s dissolution after Lisbon. So who in the EU is responsible for the Eurocorps? General de Bavinchove: The Common Committee composed of the Chiefs of Defence (CHODS) and the political directors of the foreign affairs ministries of the framework nations – Belgium, France, Germany, Luxemburg and Spain – is responsible for the Eurocorps. Over the next two years they are to be joined by a key new framework nation: Poland. The European: Clearly any Eurocorps engagement requires a decision by each participating nation: it is exactly the same as for NATO missions. But even if there is no executive institution
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Lieutenant General Olivier de Bavinchove has been Commander of the Eurocorps, Strasbourg, since July 2011. He graduated from the French Military Academy at Saint-Cyr in 1978 and attended the French Army Command and General Staff College. He was deployed in Afghanistan from October 2011 to January 2013, where he was simultaneously Chief of Staff of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Commander of the French Forces in Afghanistan. Previously, he was appointed as Chief of Staff of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) between August 2008/2009.
within the EU, should not someone in the EU be in charge of the Eurocorps, at least for planning purposes? After all, the Eurocorps founding text – the La Rochelle Treaty of 1992 – gives it a clearly European character! General de Bavinchove: Our forces have to train within NATO procedures and all European forces have to be interoperable in order to be committed in the framework of either NATO or the EU. I will not enter into the debate about Berlin Plus and the EU C2 capabilities. I can only assess and testify to the benefits of a military structure being able to participate either in a NATO or in an EU C2 organisation. The European: I would like to come back to your HQ. What are its most important skills and does it have qualities that other HQs do not have? General de Bavinchove: The Eurocorps is by nature fully multinational (the most multinational in its category), fully dedicated to operations and deployable at short notice. Since its creation it has been continuously adapted and modernised: its location in Strasbourg close to such bodies as the European Parliament and France’s National School of Administration and Institute for Political Studies has been a particular advantage in that respect. Moreover, it is the only one to have its own field equipment, which makes it fully sustainable and immediately available. The European: So finally, then, General, what is the legal basis for the Eurocorps? General de Bavinchove: The 2010 Treaty of Strasbourg gives the Eurocorps full legal and financial autonomy. It is the only
