EU Presidency Statement - Co-operation with Troop-Contributing Countries

Mr President,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Central and Eastern European Countries associated with the European Union, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, as well as the associated countries Cyprus and Malta align themselves with this statement.

The European Union welcomes this opportunity to address the important issue of co-operation between the Security Council, the UN Secretariat, and the troop-contributing countries.

Mr President,

The commitment of the European Union to the primary role of the United Nations in the maintenance of international peace and security and to the core function of peacekeeping is evident in the contributions of troops, police officers, military observers, and civilian personnel from the Member States of the European Union to UN peacekeeping operations. The European Union also supports the stand-by arrangement system as an essential element in strengthening the UN peacekeeping capacity. In addition, the Union has thousands of men and women assigned to UN mandated operations in the Balkans where the EU is by far the most important troop contributor with approximately 60% of the international effort on the ground. The share of the EU Member States in the UN peacekeeping budget is almost 40 percent, and by paying their assessed contributions on time and in full, they play a decisive role in ensuring that peacekeeping activities continue functioning smoothly.

The crisis management capacity of the European Union is rapidly developing. The goal is to contribute effectively to the prevention and resolution of conflicts. Recognising the primary responsibility of the United Nations for the maintenance of international peace and security, the EU will continue to co-operate, in a mutually reinforcing manner, with the UN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and other international organisations in conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict resolution. In this context, the EU has set itself the headline goal of being able, by 2003, to deploy within 60 days, and sustain for at least one year, forces of up to 60,000 persons. The European Union also committed itself to providing by 2003, by way of voluntary co-operation, up to 5,000 police officers, 1,000 of them to be deployable within 30 days, for international missions across the full range of conflict-prevention and crisis-management operations.

At the meeting in Nice last month, the European Council confirmed its determination to continue strengthening the EU's crisis management capabilities in the military and civilian fields. The European Union intends to co-ordinate its activities closely with the UN principal organs as well as with the OSCE, and particularly the REACT special team, and the Council of Europe. To this end, it was decided in Nice to identify possible areas as well as modalities of co-operation between the European Union and the United Nations in crisis management.

It is against this background that the European Union takes a keen interest in the co-operation between the Security Council and the troop-contributing countries. One of the priority issues for the EU in the on-going process to strengthen the UN's activities for peace and security is the formulation of clear, credible and achievable mandates for peacekeeping operations. This objective implies, among other measures, a qualitative and quantitative improvement of consultations between the Security Council and the troop-contributing countries, and a greater transparency, a process which must be maintained throughout all phases of any peace-keeping operation, from the formulation of the mandate until its successful implementation. The European Union therefore welcomes the Security Council resolution 1327, adopted last November. It is a first and very important step in the right direction, consistent with the relevant provisions of the UN Charter.

The issue was also dealt with in the report from the recent extraordinary session of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, adopted by the General Assembly last month. The report emphasised the necessity for significantly strengthening and formalising the consultation process between the Security Council and troop-contributing countries in order to make it more meaningful. Such an evolution would also encourage more countries to contribute in proportion with their capacity and increase the effectiveness of UN peacekeeping operations.

Similarly, the European Union believes that the planning process within the Secretariat can be made more effective, coherent and transparent. There is everything to be gained by involving troop-contributing countries in the early stages of planning of new missions, and throughout the lifetime of a mission, particularly with regard to risk analysis and rules of engagement. In this context, the European Union would like to express its appreciation for the priority given to this issue by the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Mr Jean-Marie Guéhenno.

The safety and security of peacekeeping personnel is a matter of utmost concern to all troop-contributing countries. Further measures in this regard should be developed as a priority.

Mr President,

Looking to the future, the European Union stands ready to consider positively other mechanisms that can strengthen the link between the Security Council and troop contributors. The proposal in the report of the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations, the so-called Brahimi report, that troop-contributing countries' advice to the Security Council might usefully be institutionalised via the establishment of ad hoc subsidiary organs of the Council, as provided for in article 29 of the Charter, is among the ideas that could be considered.

The European Union would like to take this opportunity to reiterate its support for the Brahimi Report. We welcome the work that has already been carried out in order to implement its recommendations, inter alia, the partial strengthening of the secretariat that can be achieved after the approval of the fifth committee last month.

While welcoming these developments, the European Union underlines the importance it attaches to an appropriate organisational structure and staffing of the Secretariat. More is needed in order to provide the Secretariat with sufficient resources to enable it to carry out its mission. The EU looks forward to the comprehensive review of the management, structure, recruitment processes and interrelationships of elements in the Secretariat that deal with peacekeeping, and to a resumption of the consideration of the Brahimi report in the General Assembly later this year.

Thank you, Mr President.

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