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Programme of the Netherlands WEAG Chairmanship 2003-2004 |
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(Source: Dutch Ministry of Defence; undated; web-posted March 10, 2003)
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1 Introduction
As from the 1st of January 2003 the Netherlands will carry the responsibility of the WEAG Chairmanship for a period of two years. This period promises to be both interesting and challenging. During the last few years, a genuine proliferation of initiatives can be observed from nations working together in the field of armaments such as OCCAR (I), Framework Agreement, POLARM (II), informal EU NADs meetings and other forms of voluntary co-operation between (some) European nations on specific projects.
Within the European Union, the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) will be further developed, together with the implementation of the European Capabilities Action Plan (ECAP). Concrete results of the ECAP are expected in the spring of 2003. Furthermore, NATO, as decided in Prague, will proceed with the implementation of a refocused Defence Capabilities Initiative (DCI), the so-called Prague Capabilities Commitment (PCC).
Observing all of those initiatives and developments, it seems that the WEAG, as an instrument for the promotion of European armaments co-operation, has lost some ground. Failed efforts by WEAG nations to create a European Armaments Agency, in a period when the large European nations were setting up and formalising OCCAR, contributed to this impression. Despite these developments, the Netherlands Chair sees interesting opportunities and challenges for the WEAG. The WEAG still has an important role to play in the evolution of the European armaments co-operation.
The challenge that the Netherlands Chairmanship sees is to improve the visibility of the WEAG in its relations with other countries, European (EU) bodies and NATO. Therefore the Netherlands Chairmanship will endeavour to strengthen the informal relationships between the WEAG and OCCAR, Framework Agreement nations and other multilateral groups. Our aim is to maintain the WEAG as a forum of reference for armaments co-operation in Europe and to create permanent contacts between the WEAG and other international organisations and multinational initiatives. The WEAG can play the role of nerve centre for all the activities and initiatives being undertaken in the area of armaments co-operation.
2 Recent developments
Current European political and military developments are progressing at a rapid pace. The Netherlands programme has attempted to take them into account, while considering potential initiatives. For some developments the final outcome is not yet known. The further evolution of the situation in Europe may therefore require that the Netherlands Chair takes additional action, or requests an adaptation of our course. Before providing an outline of our programme, an overview of current developments is listed.
2.1 Recent decisions
The WEAG Ministers of Defence, at their May 2002 meeting in Rome, agreed that the WEAG will be maintained as a forum for political consultations in the field of armaments in Europe and for the promotion of co-operation among member nations. They also agreed that the WEAG/WEAO (III) should play a more pro-active role in European armaments co-operation, taking into account the developments in the ESDP, the EU Headline Goal and the NATO DCI or its successor, and accordingly decided to re-examine the scope of the internal structure.
2.2. European Convention
Since 2002, in the European Convention representatives of governments, national parliaments and the European Parliament, under the leadership of former president of France, Giscard d’Estaing, are discussing the institutional future of Europe. European armaments co-operation is one of the subjects being discussed in Working Group VIII on Defence, under the chairmanship of Mr. Barnier. The relevance of armaments co-operation is clearly recognised in the content of the EU treaty. Article 17 states that: ‘the gradual development of a common defence policy will, if nations consider it to be suitable, be supported by armaments co-operation’. Therefore the Convention may be an opportunity to enable further progress in the area of armaments co-operation. If so, the next Intergovernmental Conference may constitute an important step forward in this area.
2.3 European Capabilities
In the framework of the Headline Goal and the European Security and Defence Policy a European Capabilities Action Plan (ECAP) has recently been launched. ECAP is supported by 19 action panels, which will develop proposals to fulfil shortfalls. The ECAP action panels are expected to provide concrete results in early 2003.
During the Prague summit a decision was taken by the Heads of State and Governments to refocus the DCI on the following four areas: defences against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons; information superiority; combat effectiveness and interoperability; deployability and sustainability. In the Prague Capabilities Commitment (PCC), NATO nations have committed themselves to realising capabilities in these four high-priority areas.
In this context the challenge for the WEAG is to focus on the provision of better capabilities. The best added value from the WEAG can be obtained by making the expertise of the WEAG and its three panels available to the ECAP action panels and the PCC working groups with the aim of translating the required European capabilities into concrete armament projects.
2.4 Enlargement of EU and NATO
At NATO’s Prague summit in November 2002, the Heads of State and Governments decided to enlarge NATO in the year 2004 and invited the following seven Eastern European nations to join: Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria. At the EU’s December summit in Copenhagen, the Council decided to enlarge the EU and to invite Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Cyprus and Malta to begin final negotiations for EU membership. These enlargements will undoubtedly have an effect on the WEAG.
The challenge for the WEAG and the Netherlands Chairmanship will be to start up exploratory talks with these nations about possible WEAG membership. Together with Switzerland there are in total 10 potential new WEAG member states. If all of these candidate nations become members of the WEAG, this will result in a WEAG membership of 29 nations. Efficient management is an absolute prerequisite for accommodating such enlarged membership.
2.5 EU-NATO arrangement
Recently NATO reached an agreement on the arrangement between EU and NATO concerning the use of NATO collective assets and capabilities for EU-led military operations. Besides the use of existing NATO assets and capabilities, the aim is also to develop military capabilities required for carrying out the missions envisaged by both organisations in an open and co-operative manner. This agreement is a major step forward in putting into effect the strategic partnership between the EU and NATO.
The Netherlands Chair will further analyse the implications of this so-called Berlin plus arrangement.
2.6 OCCAR and the Framework Agreement
In 1996 France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom founded OCCAR. In 2001 the OCCAR Convention came into force and the organisation also acquired legal status. The aim of OCCAR is to provide effective arrangements for the management and development of certain existing and future collaborative armaments programmes between its member states. Participation in these programmes is also open to non-member states. OCCAR is expected to fulfil an important role with regard to collaborative European defence equipment programmes. The WEAG can offer a forum for dialogue between the OCCAR nations and the other WEAG nations.
In 1998 the Ministers of Defence from six EU countries signed a letter of intent with the aim of defining a framework for industrial restructuring in the defence sphere.
The main objective of the Letter of Intent (LoI) initiative is to put in place the necessary intergovernmental action to facilitate the restructuring of the European aerospace and defence industries, with the emphasis on harmonising existing regulations in order to facilitate cross-border industrial co-operation and mutual trust. The implementation process is ongoing in these areas. The results of this so-called Framework Agreement could serve as a basis for the WEAG, in order to ensure compatibility between the work of the WEAG and the Framework Agreement. This means that (informal) exchange of information between the WEAG and the Framework nations is important.
3 Challenges for the future of the WEAG
The WEAG remains the broadest European political forum in the area of armaments co-operation. In the recent past the WEAG was a breeding ground for all manner of new European initiatives. The challenge for the WEAG in the coming years will be to follow intensively everything that is happening in the area of European armaments co-operation and to give added value to all the different initiatives undertaken in its sphere of influence. The WEAG could act as a forum where all those other multinational groups come together and can exchange information. The WEAG could act as a broker’s office and mediate between the WEAG nations and other European structures and bodies. Multinational bodies such as OCCAR and the Framework Agreement can be considered to be the most advanced components of the overall European armaments co-operation and should be actively followed by the WEAG in order to identify possible ways and means of extending their achievements to all the WEAG members.
The WEAG has much to offer as it can provide knowledge, expertise and services not only to the aforementioned European bodies and structures, but also to individual nations.
The WEAG’s readiness to accept new members represents a guarantee for the future, as it already includes most of the European member states of NATO and the EU. The WEAG has the potential to become the European centre for political consultation and co-operation on armaments, since the NATO and EU working groups are by definition restricted to the member countries of those organisations. The WEAG still represents the largest common denominator. In order to further strengthen the role of the WEAG as political forum in the field of armaments co-operation a consultation process needs to be initiated with candidate member nations of the EU and NATO. The Netherlands Chairmanship intends to focus on these lines of action.
In concert with EU and NATO, the WEAG also has to focus on capability shortfalls. A capability-oriented approach needs to be promoted in all WEAG activities. Only with such an orientation the WEAG can add value to the ongoing developments in the EU and NATO. The WEAG could play the role of consultant for the EU and NATO on the one hand, and provide advice/services to nations on the other. The WEAG and other structures and bodies need to be complementary and mutually reinforcing.
An important principle for NADs is to prevent duplication in capacities and functions. This means that a high level of exchange of information between WEAG, the EU, NATO and other bodies is indispensable.
4 Objectives of the Netherlands Chairmanship
Based on the present European context, recent developments and the experiences of the former WEAG Chair, the Netherlands has formulated its main objectives for its two-year chairmanship. These objectives are considered to be pragmatic, achievable and tailored to the current European context. It is certainly not the intention of the Netherlands Chair to present, under the current circumstances, proposals to institutionalise new bodies or new structures. The Netherlands chair intends to focus the programme for the period 2003-2004 on the following items:
4.1 Outstanding issues
The Netherlands Chair strives for a smooth and seamless transition from the Italian to the Netherlands Chairmanship. The Netherlands Chair will therefore take up all the action points that have been agreed during previous NADs and Ministerial meetings and continue with remaining or with open issues from the Italian presidency, such as:
--- the further introduction of a more capability-oriented approach in the three WEAG panels;
-- further support of a more pro-active role of the WEAG in the European armaments co-operation;
-- the continued monitoring of political and institutional developments in Europe that may affect European armaments co-operation.
4.2 External Relations of the WEAG
The WEAG is not an isolated forum of European nations but is situated in a rapidly-changing environment. The challenge for the WEAG is to keep up with all these changes and to adapt itself in such a way that is beneficial not only for the WEAG itself, but also for the nations, the EU, NATO, etc.
The Netherlands Chair therefore intends to strengthen the relations between the WEAG and other relevant nations and institutions. It will maintain, continue and intensify the contacts with NATO, POLARM, OCCAR, Framework Agreement nations, EDIG (IV), etc. as appropriate. By doing so, the WEAG could make its experience and knowledge in the armaments field available to the EU, NATO and other bodies for their analysis, plans and activities on armaments matters. On the other hand those organisations could keep the WEAG informed about current plans and programmes in this field. Visibility and open lines of communication are therefore of prime importance.
Following the decisions of the EU and NATO concerning new members, the Netherlands Chair will also entertain informal preparatory talks with candidate member nations. The WEAG has a lot to offer to those candidate member nations: experience in and knowledge of the European armaments field, the role of a discussion forum and a laboratory to test ideas.
The Netherlands Chair intends to start up, maintain or extend external relations with important nations such as the US and Canada, as well as the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
In the relationship with the US and Canada it is important that the further development of European co-operation will lead to a perception of Europe not as a ‘Fortress of Europe’ but as a strong European pillar of NATO. In this respect the transatlantic dialogue between the US, Canada and the WEAG needs to be preserved.
With regard to the Russian Federation and Ukraine, it is important to keep an open relationship. The Netherlands Chair intends, at an appropriate point in time, to start up introductory talks with the Russian Federation and Ukraine.
The Netherlands Chair will naturally also make an effort to strengthen and deepen the relationship with the European defence industry in order to enhance the defence technological and industrial base.
4.3 Interoperability
As a result of future European peacekeeping operations, interoperability and compatibility in respect of European equipment are becoming increasingly crucial. The Netherlands Chair intends to give further emphasis to the standardisation of European armament and equipment. In this respect it is certainly not our intention to duplicate what has already been developed and is ongoing in NATO, but to draw more attention to the European dimension of standardisation.
In the European armaments landscape, the need for a common understanding and common doctrine is increasing. Common training and education in the area of European armaments could make an important contribution to such a desirable common approach. In the past this important area of interest did not receive a great deal of attention from the WEAG. The Netherlands Chair considers common training and education to be an essential precondition for further European armaments co-operation. The Netherlands Chair will therefore take the first step towards the development of the basic principles for a WEAG training and education initiative.
Finally, the Netherlands Chair will investigate the possibility of the further introduction of common simulation and trials. A promising new development in the field of simulation is the virtual demonstrator. The idea of the so-called virtual demonstrator is at an early stage, and involves the visualisation, manipulation and testing of various system environments, and the running of specific applications as part of a simulation. The Netherlands Chair sees interesting potential in the further application of common simulation in general and, more specifically, virtual demonstrators.
4.4 Operation and Maintenance
A number of European nations have decided to reduce their defence budgets. This means that nations have to rely more and more on co-operation with other European nations. Until now the WEAG paid more attention to the possibilities of joint arrangements in the development and production of equipment. However, the Netherlands Chair wants to draw more attention to the benefits of joint arrangements in the operation and maintenance (O&M) of armaments. The operation and maintenance costs form an important part of the total lifecycle costs. Significant cost savings could be established by common arrangements in the area of O&M. The Netherlands Chair is at present investigating this subject and will develop proposals (for example the proposed in-service arrangements of the NH 90).
For this initiative it is certainly not our intention to duplicate what has already been developed and is ongoing in NATO.
4.5 Other Initiatives
The Netherlands Chair also intends to initiate strategic discussions at the level of NADs prepared by the Staff Group as deemed necessary, on subjects such as:
-- what will be the future of the WEAG in relation to the EU? Will the WEAG continue to exist outside or alongside the EU, or does the WEAG, as a first step towards integration in the EU, already need to prepare a transfer of responsibilities, knowledge and expertise to the EU;
-- is the existence of a European Armaments Planning System not a prerequisite for an effective European Armaments Co-operation? What role could the WEAG play in the development of such a European Armaments Planning System?
-- the same applies to a European Armaments Policy. Could the WEAG play a role as a think tank in the formulation of a European Armaments Policy?
-- in what way could the WEAG incorporate the latest developments in European technology in the formulation of new common armament requirements,
-- in what way could the WEAG extend the use of Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) as an instrument for co-operation in specific areas?
-- in what way can ongoing and planned WEAG Research and Technology projects be related for integration in the EU framework programme for Research and Technological Development? For example in the form of dual use.
4.6 Working methods and procedures
During the coming two years the Netherlands Chair also intends to propose practical improvements to the WEAG machinery, for example:
-- making more use of special ad hoc expert groups in addition to or instead of using permanent panels;
-- increasing the effective use of the WEAG Staff Group in preparing and speeding up the decision-making process during WEAG NADs and WEAO BoD (V)meetings;
-- improving the agenda management of the WEAG Staff Group and the panels;
-- rotating the chairmanship of the three panels, in order to prevent the yearly recurring problem of finding a suitable chairman;
-- reviewing the effectiveness of the administrative support of the Armaments Secretariat.
5 Conclusions
The Netherlands Chair is looking forward to WORKING with you:
I Organisation conjointe de coopération en matière d’armement
II Politique d’armement (Council ad hoc group on armaments policy)
III Western European Armaments Organisation
IV European Defence Industries Group
V Western European Armaments Organisation Board of Directors
-ends-
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