lucky wilbury
10-11-2004, 06:17 PM
http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2004/1011/2676155256HM1ANNAN.html
Annan to use Irish trip to push plan for 'hit squads'
By Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
The United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, will use his Irish visit this week to promote plans for emergency military intervention by EU battlegroups on behalf of the UN in crisis situations, which could involve Irish troops, writes Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
In an exclusive interview in today's Irish Times, he said he was "very excited" about the proposals, which he will highlight in a major speech at the Forum on Europe in Dublin Castle on Thursday.
Speaking at his office in New York, Mr Annan said: "I'm very excited about that prospect, in the sense that there are quite a few problems which you can either contain or nip in the bud if you are able to send in a force quickly."
He pointed to the success of the French-led "Operation Artemis", which had Irish officers in the supporting HQ. It took place in the Democratic Republic of the Congo last year.
"You may not necessarily even have to fight," Mr Annan said. "You sometimes have to show force in order not to use force." In some crisis areas, the inhabitants were intimidated by "local bullies" who would not stand up to an international force, he added.
Proposals for EU-UN military co-operation were strongly promoted during Ireland's recent European presidency and received further backing over the weekend from the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, who said on a visit to Addis Ababa that the EU's "rapidly deployable battlegroups" should be operational next year and could be on the ground to tackle an African crisis within 10 days.
However, Irish participation in such operations could be highly controversial. There would have to be a UN mandate as well as Dáil and Government approval. It would also require considerable advance training as well as a high level of interaction at operational level with armies from other EU states.
The battlegroups or "hit squad" concept is in line with new thinking on international military action to prevent genocide, avoiding a repetition of the Rwanda tragedy ten years ago.
A high-level panel, due to report to Mr Annan in early December, is expected to urge changes in the concept of state sovereignty so that military action can be taken where states are committing genocide against their own citizens or failing to protect them from extermination.
Sources said the forum was the most appropriate location for Mr Annan's speech because it would ensure that senior politicians and key civil society representatives understood Mr Annan's viewpoint on the value of EU participation, "particularly military action", in crisis management operations.
There were implications also for the forthcoming referendum debate on the European Constitution as it would be clear that EU-UN military co-operation was "not compromising our neutrality, but rather it is the EU assisting the UN", according to official sources.
Mr Annan arrives in Ireland on Wednesday for his five-day visit. Next Monday he will give a lecture at the University of Ulster in Derry.
The chairman of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance and a member of the Forum on Europe, Mr Roger Cole, said that while he welcomed Mr Annan's visit, the UN was "in danger of becoming an instrument of US-EU policy". He would be seeking to make this point to the Secretary General.
Annan to use Irish trip to push plan for 'hit squads'
By Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
The United Nations Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, will use his Irish visit this week to promote plans for emergency military intervention by EU battlegroups on behalf of the UN in crisis situations, which could involve Irish troops, writes Deaglán de Bréadún, Foreign Affairs Correspondent
In an exclusive interview in today's Irish Times, he said he was "very excited" about the proposals, which he will highlight in a major speech at the Forum on Europe in Dublin Castle on Thursday.
Speaking at his office in New York, Mr Annan said: "I'm very excited about that prospect, in the sense that there are quite a few problems which you can either contain or nip in the bud if you are able to send in a force quickly."
He pointed to the success of the French-led "Operation Artemis", which had Irish officers in the supporting HQ. It took place in the Democratic Republic of the Congo last year.
"You may not necessarily even have to fight," Mr Annan said. "You sometimes have to show force in order not to use force." In some crisis areas, the inhabitants were intimidated by "local bullies" who would not stand up to an international force, he added.
Proposals for EU-UN military co-operation were strongly promoted during Ireland's recent European presidency and received further backing over the weekend from the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, who said on a visit to Addis Ababa that the EU's "rapidly deployable battlegroups" should be operational next year and could be on the ground to tackle an African crisis within 10 days.
However, Irish participation in such operations could be highly controversial. There would have to be a UN mandate as well as Dáil and Government approval. It would also require considerable advance training as well as a high level of interaction at operational level with armies from other EU states.
The battlegroups or "hit squad" concept is in line with new thinking on international military action to prevent genocide, avoiding a repetition of the Rwanda tragedy ten years ago.
A high-level panel, due to report to Mr Annan in early December, is expected to urge changes in the concept of state sovereignty so that military action can be taken where states are committing genocide against their own citizens or failing to protect them from extermination.
Sources said the forum was the most appropriate location for Mr Annan's speech because it would ensure that senior politicians and key civil society representatives understood Mr Annan's viewpoint on the value of EU participation, "particularly military action", in crisis management operations.
There were implications also for the forthcoming referendum debate on the European Constitution as it would be clear that EU-UN military co-operation was "not compromising our neutrality, but rather it is the EU assisting the UN", according to official sources.
Mr Annan arrives in Ireland on Wednesday for his five-day visit. Next Monday he will give a lecture at the University of Ulster in Derry.
The chairman of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance and a member of the Forum on Europe, Mr Roger Cole, said that while he welcomed Mr Annan's visit, the UN was "in danger of becoming an instrument of US-EU policy". He would be seeking to make this point to the Secretary General.