The European Union has begun to display its military arm for the first time in its history. The naval base of Rota (Cádiz) yesterday witnessed the start of maneuvers in real conditions of the rapid deployment force, with which the European partners intend to respond to possible imminent threats outside the Union. A crucial test on the ground in which around 3,000 military personnel from 31 units from 19 member states participate.
The new European military force should reach full operational capacity in 2025, according to the planned community times. That year, the military capacity for planning and execution – framed in the General Staff of the European Union – will assume command of the troops that until then will be controlled by national units.
As explained to La Vanguardia by lieutenant colonel Gonzalo Méndez de Pando, assigned to the force development division of the Joint General Staff, the completion of this exercise becomes “a historic milestone” within the framework of the objectives of the Strategic Compass .
The Milex 23 exercise consists of two parts connected to each other. The first consisted of a command post exercise and lasted until Friday, October 6. In this part, the military planning process was put to the test on a strategic and operational scale. The second part is the live exercise (Livex), which started yesterday and will last until next Sunday. During these days the force will be deployed in a “simulated theater of operations” in the province of Cádiz and will execute the operational plan developed during the planning phase.
The approximately 3,000 soldiers who take part in the exercise do not know what the days will offer them. Military sources tell this newspaper that the maneuver will supposedly take place in a non-European country – this is the nature of the rapid deployment force – where terrorist attacks perpetrated by a group with a great capacity for action have left the security of the area. From disinformation campaigns to cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, including pirates on the high seas.
An amphibious landing from the Juan Carlos I, where the force’s headquarters are located, served to start the military exercise, to which challenges will be added from Brussels, where the operational headquarters are located. The same sources state that the situations could range from an evacuation operation to deploying a team against a cyber attack.
The high representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, witnessed yesterday the disembarkation on a beach at the Rota base. The vice-president of the European Commission assured that the maneuvers will serve to build a common strategic culture” in defense matters.
“As the European Union, we must be prepared to act in an appropriate way, to protect our citizens and to contribute to global stability. Therefore, we must do exercises together, which will help us to be better prepared to play our role as a defense and as a general security provider”, said Borrell. The high representative defended the design of “a robust and adaptable military instrument” that offers this “quick response”. In this sense, he announced that it will be “ready” in 2025.
After witnessing the start of the military exercise, Borrell moved to Seville, where he chaired together with the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, the meeting of the EU Military Committee (EUMC) of Chiefs of Staff of Defense, at the headquarters of the land force, in Seville. The program of the European Chiefs of Staff includes four working sessions, in which the support to Ukraine, the development of the European rapid deployment capacity, the future of missions in the Sahel and the update of the Development Plan of Capacities of the European Union.
“You are fundamental to strengthening the generation of forces for the missions and operations of the European Union, one of the most visible tools of foreign action”, the minister warned them. Robles stressed that, among other things, “they are decisive in the development of the most important initiative of the Strategic Compass, the capacity for rapid deployment, and secure command, control and communications.”