At the moment Sweden is for the third time leading one of the Unions
battle groups. The so called Nordic Battle Group is probably not going to be deployed
outside of Europe this time either. And for the third time critical and disappointing
questions are going to be raised regarding why the EUBG was not used in a mission?
If the Union is going to fulfill its vision and perform as a global security
actor then the concept with EUBG needs to be changed.
The current concept with the EUBG is based on the legacy from the Solana
administration which was working with establishment of CFSP and CSDP. The concept
is old fashioned and outdated since EUBG:s are to small in size in order to really
make a difference. Another legacy for shaping the CSDP are the wars in former Yugoslavia
, a catastrophic scenario for which EU was criticized for not being able to
respond effectively towards the crisis that was taking place Europe. By changing the concept with the
battle groups EU could establish a rapid reaction force with permanent command,
more personnel and continues operational preparedness in order to be able to
conduct peacekeeping and responsibility
to protect missions around the globe.
Regarding peacekeeping and peace enforcement, for a long time there have been talks about more European common voice and engagement within United Nations.
These opinions are regarding the security challenges in today’s world, opinions
that are shared also within the UN. Especially in a time when UN is facing
organizational problems, not at least regarding the Security Council and area
of Peace and Security, Union could provide a stronger impact for a safer and peaceful
world. For example at the moment Commission is one of the biggest donors of humanitarian
aid and EU-28 are together biggest in the world.
With the another model of EUBG concept
the Union could do more to perform as a global actor for dealing with
crisis, wars and conflicts around the world. A new kind of battle group could always
be at disposal for UN to call upon when problems occur. Especially this could
be usable in a scenario such as it was in Mali or Central African Republic. This
however depends much on political will both at European and national level. Also
it represents the chance for the Union to really become a global actor and to implement
the visions rooted in experiences from the bloody wars on Balkans during the
90’s.
