Irish troops are on their way to Chad. Opponents of the Lisbon Treaty say the treaty represents a further militarisation of the EU. Does it? Tom Clonanevaluates the treaty text.
It is 10 years since the European Union's St Malo Declaration in which Europe's leaders stated that the Union "ought to have the capability for autonomous action backed up by credible military forces" up to 2,500 miles beyond Europe's borders. Arising from that declaration, the EU developed the concept of its Rapid Reaction Force (ERRF) and by 2003, in theory, had access to over 100,000 pan-European troops - including members of the Irish Defence Forces - approximately 100 surface vessels and up to 400 fighter aircraft, helicopters and transport planes.
The Nice Treaty copper-fastened the rapid reaction concept and allowed for the formalisation of the EU military staffs - the centralised command and control system for the EU's fledgling collective military capability. The Rapid Reaction Force's general staff are now headquartered in Brussels and report to the EU Military Committee. The committee in return reports through the EU's Political and Security Committee to the EU's Council of Ministers.
Since the Nice Treaty, a number of senior Irish Army officers have served in key positions among the general staff.
The Lisbon Treaty, not unlike the Nice Treaty before it, has specific military, security and foreign policy implications for the European Union in general and Ireland in particular. To begin with, the treaty expands upon the roles that the EU's military forces might become involved in.
Up until now, the roles assigned the Rapid Reaction Forces, which have now metamorphosed into EU Battlegroups, were covered by the European Union's so-called Petersberg Tasks. The Petersberg Tasks included humanitarian and rescue tasks, crisis management, peacekeeping and peace-making operations.
Article 28B of the Lisbon Treaty goes into more detail as to the type of missions EU forces might be deployed on in the future. They include: "joint disarmament operations, humanitarian and rescue tasks, military advice and assistance tasks, conflict prevention and peace-keeping tasks, tasks of combat forces in crisis management, including peace-making and post-conflict stabilisation. All these tasks may contribute to the fight against terrorism, including by supporting third countries in combating terrorism in their territories".
Despite this very broad statement - which includes the fullest possible spectrum of military operations - the treaty states, at Article 3A, that "in particular, national security remains the sole responsibility of each member state".
Therefore, it would appear that while the Lisbon Treaty allows for a widening in the scope of collective EU military operations, it does not immediately impact on the domestic defence arrangements within member states.
However, the treaty would appear to favour military integration, cohesion and solidarity among EU member states. Specifically, Article 11 of the treaty states: "The Union's competence in matters of common foreign and security policy shall cover all areas of foreign policy and all questions relating to the Union's security including the progressive framing of a common defence policy that might lead to a common defence".
To this end, the treaty contains a "Solidarity Clause" which would commit member states to joint action - including military action - in a number of eventualities.
Specifically, according to Article 188R: "The Union and its member states shall act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if a member state is the object of a terrorist attack or the victim of a natural or man-made disaster. The Union shall mobilise all the instruments at its disposal, including the military resources made available by the member states to prevent the terrorist threat in the territory of the member states; protect democratic institutions and civilian population from any terrorist attack; assist a member state in its territory, at the request of its political authorities, in the event of a terrorist attack. . . [ or] in the event of a natural or man-made disaster".
The Solidarity Clause clearly formalises the EU's commitment to the concept of collective military action - on a very broad basis - and may be seen by some to represent a commitment towards the formulation of a common defence clause for the EU. The treaty also allows for "permanent structured co-operation" between EU member states who are committed to permanent collective military capabilities and alliances. This provision, under Article 28E, would allow states such as France and Germany to formalise their military integration at a European Union Military Staffs Headquarters level - in a manner not dissimilar to the command and control structures at Nato headquarters.
The programmatic nature of the treaty's commitment to military integration is evident in Article 28A which states: "Member states shall undertake progressively to improve their military capabilities. The Agency in the field of defence capabilities development, research, acquisition and armaments, (hereinafter referred to as 'the European Defence Agency') shall identify operational requirements, shall promote measures to satisfy those requirements, shall contribute to identifying, and where appropriate, implementing any measure to strengthen the industrial and technological base of the defence sector, shall participate in defining a European capabilities and armaments policy and shall assist the Council in evaluating the improvement of military capabilities".
In tandem with these military developments, the treaty allows for the creation of a new EU position of "High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy" presiding over the Foreign Affairs Council of the EU. The high representative - who will be one of the vice-presidents of the commission - will also oversee a newly created European Union diplomatic corps to be known as the European External Action Service.
Therefore, in common with increased military and defence harmonisation within the EU, the treaty seeks explicitly to harmonise foreign and security policy. To this end, Article 16 states: "Member states shall ensure, through the convergence of their actions, that the Union is able to assert its interests and values on the international scene. Member states shall show mutual solidarity".
The last 10 years have seen Ireland become progressively integrated into European military structures. It is clear from a number of key clauses and the aspirational wording of the Lisbon Treaty in relation to security and defence issues, that the EU - already an established economic, social and political entity - has identifiable military ambitions.
Wherever those ambitions lead the Union, it is certain that Ireland - irrespective of its neutral status - will play an important part in these developments.