Strategic Panorama 2009 - 2010 - IEEE

Aníbal Villalba Fernández
of stabilisation instruments both to prevent crisis situations and to restore
peace and rebuild institutions after a conflict. These capabilities of the
EU, in addition to the traditional political tools of the Member States, are
where the EU’s added value lies, and enable it to combine humanitarian
assistance, support for institutional rebuilding and good governance in
developing countries with crisis-management and technical and financial
assistance capabilities, as well as classic diplomatic tools such as political
dialogue and mediation.
Solana states that the EU’s purpose in ESDP matters is to promote
peace and security worldwide; the raison d’être of its operations is crisis
management; its hallmark is its holistic approach; and its key attribute is
its flexibility. The Union seeks to offer solutions that are tailored to complex
security needs—and with the awareness that the conflicts of toady
evidence that a military solution is neither the sole nor the best option,
particularly during the stabilisation of a crisis. Nevertheless, the EU offers
a combination of civilian and military resources which can be used separately
or jointly.
Solana furthermore points out that the EU acts autonomously or in
cooperation with others, and although it is in the Union’s own interests to
promote stability in its neighbourhood, the Union’s action is not limited to
this scenario, as the EU is a global player with international responsibilities.
The Union insofar as it is a political community wishes to continue to
contribute to improving the common good, with democracy, freedom and
the rule of law as the basis of its action(6).
Elaborating on the foregoing, General Bentégeat, President of the EU’s
Military Committee, reckons that a collective feeling of confidence in the
effectiveness of the ESDP has taken shape, based on concrete results
and fuelled by the steady and sustained development of the EU’s collective
military capabilities, its chain of command, operational concepts and
procedures, and prompt reactions in intervention operations.
On the other hand, Bentégeat points out three challenges to continued
progress. The first and most important is the need to speed up the
integration of the EU’s overall external action, which requires planning
and crisis management to be fully integrated, both in Brussels and on
(6) SOLANA, JAVIER. «Ten years of European Security and Defence Policy». ESDP newsletter.
European Security and Defence Policy 1999-2009. October 2009. http://www.
consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cmsUpload/ESDP%20newsletter%20-%20Special%20
issue%20ESDP@10.pdf
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