Entries for the 'Transatlantic Cooperation' Category

Just weeks ahead of the NATO summit in Chicago and the G8 summit in Camp David, the Security and Defence Agenda presents an executive summary of the 2012 Security Jam, a unique global brainstorm. The document offers recommendations, from the world’s top military, NGOs, academia and public sector officials on issues such as smart defence, cyber-security, Afghanistan, crisis management and enhanced cooperation, of use in preparations for the summit.

Afghanistan and the U.S. agreed on a long awaited strategic partnership document dealing with the future relationship of the two countries after major troop withdrawals in 2014.

U.S. President Barack Obama told Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at a nuclear security summit in Seoul yesterday that he had little flexibility to address Russia’s objections to a U.S. missile defence shield during an election year.

US President Barack Obama and UK Prime Minister David Cameron are to agree on an end to the US’ and UK’s “lead combat role” in Afghanistan by mid-2013.

The United Kingdom is experiencing another debate about its role in the Afghan war after the killing of six British soldiers by a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan.

Last week’s Koran burning at the NATO base in Afghanistan has triggered a wave of violent protests against Western forces all over the country.

According to a French defence official, France may sell Mirage F-1 fighter jets to Libya. France is currently replacing its Mirage fleet by Dassault’s Rafale aircraft.

In the scope of a meeting with German Defence Minister Thomas de Maizière, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta outlined the details of upcoming US troop changes in Europe.

In the scope of its Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) system, NATO will purchase five US-built Global Hawk drones from Northrop Grumman.

According to a report by the defence select committee of the British Parliament, the UK would struggle to conduct an operation of the dimension of the Libya campaign after the full implementation of the strategic defence and security review.

According to a diplomatic source, NATO is planning to install its missile shield command centre for Europe on the US military base in Ramstein, Germany.

Pentagon officials announced yesterday that the U.S. defense budget for 2013 will cut military spending by five percent to $525 million, marking the first decrease in the Pentagon’s base budget since Sept. 11.

A Royal Fleet Auxiliary supply ship (RFA), Fort Victoria, thwarted an attempt by Somali pirates to attack cargo ships in the Indian Ocean last Tuesday.

Ellen Tauscher, US Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security expressed her confidence yesterday, in the up-coming US-Russia ‘strategic stability talks.’

Espen Barth Eide, Norway's Defence Minister told an audience assembled at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, that NATO is losing its self-defence capability.

The United States announced yesterday that it will not adopt the European Union's proposed "code of conduct" for space activity. Ellen Tauscher, Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security claimed the current draft is to “restrictive.”

One of the major innovations of the new US Defense Strategic Review is the emphasis on challenges in the Asia-Pacific region and the goal to foster progress in the Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa.

According to the Pentagon, the military dialogue between the US and Pakistan continues despite recent disputes following the killing of 24 Pakistani soldiers in a US-led airstrike on the Afghan-Pakistani border in November 2011.

On December 7th, the SDA welcomed the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan H.E. Dr. Elmar Mammadyarov for an evening debate.

On November 7th the SDA along with the CEIS and the KAS hosted the annual Security and Defence Day conference entitled "Re-thinking Europe's security priorities."

The SDA yesterday hosted Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, NATO Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy, for a lunch with SDA members to discuss NATO’s priorities for 2012 and objectives for the Chicago summit as well as the SDA’s programme for its 10th anniversary.

The UK is to seek new military alliances and will no longer invest in large-scale military missions, declares Chief of Staff Gen. Sir David Richards in his annual “state of the union” address on December 14th.

NATO has announced that it will complete its Training Mission in Iraq (NTM-I) on December 31st 2011, the expiry date of the current mission.

As a direct consequence to a NATO airstrike which killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in the Afghan-Pakistani border region in November, the US followed the Pakistani request to vacate Shamsi airbase in the South-western Pakistani province of Baluchistan.

A US warship, part of NATO’s counter-piracy mission Operation Ocean Shield off the Horn of Africa, captured a group of pirates in cooperation with a Japanese military aircraft earlier this week.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen urged Russia not to waste money on unnecessary measures to counterbalance European missile defence.

The Netherlands are aiming to strengthen cooperation with other European countries and play a pioneering role in multinational defence projects.

Ten years after the Petersberg Conference, setting the framework for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, Bonn is to host another International Afghanistan Conference on Monday.

European defence ministers agreed on a range of projects for pooling defence capabilities at their Brussels meeting on November 30th.

Russia activated a warning radar system against incoming missiles in the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad yesterday.

In a direct reaction to the NATO-led bombing of two Pakistani military posts in the Afghan-Pakistani border region, which killed 24 Pakistani soldiers on November 26th, Pakistan asked the US to leave the Shamsi airbase.

The Franco-British summit will be dedicated to different aspects of the countries’ defence cooperation at the end of this week.

A US proposal for a new cluster munitions treaty was rejected by member states of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW), also known as the ‘Oslo Convention’, an international treaty banning the use of cluster bombs.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai on the weekend announced details of the second phase of transition from NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to Afghan authorities to be completed by 2014.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has warned the US and their NATO allies against continuing their plans for a missile shield for Europe and ignoring Russian concerns.

Following the announcement of a US troop deployment to northern Australia, Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith expressed the country’s willingness to concretely consider plans for trilateral military training of US, Chinese and Australian forces.

Ahead of NATO’s Chicago Summit in May 2012, the Alliance has launched an initiative for concrete pooling of defence resources.

President Barack Obama announced on today during a speech to the Australian Parliament that budget cuts would not thwart plans for a broader US military role in Asia.

From 18 November to 6 December this year, the EU will organise and conduct its first crisis management exercise under the Lisbon Treaty.

NATO is pressing Georgia to step up its political and military reforms to enable faster accession into the Alliance. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen praised Georgia’s current reform process and their contributions to the mission in Afghanistan of 900 troops.

NATO jets policing the skies of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia took to the skies on Monday to escort Russian air force planes near the Baltic territory.

Drawing from the experiences of the ongoing eurozone crisis and the Arab uprisings, panellists Jan Borkowski, Polish Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Francis Delon, French Secretary General for Defence and National Security, Ivan Soltanovskiy, Director of European Cooperation at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

Washington moved to kick-start reconciliation talks aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan by continuing air and ground strikes against the Haqqani network and the Taliban, with an insistence that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency brings them to the negotiating table.

NATO officials state they will not use the Libya ‘template’ to resolve the violence in Syria asserting that any Syrian mission plan currently lacks international consensus and broader regional support.

According to the Russian newspaper Kommersant, the US are trying to intensify the deadlocked US-Russian cooperation on missile defence and have invited Russian defence officials to visit the US Missile Defence Agency (MDA) base in Colorado.

On September 22 the SDA hosted a high-level roundtable on "The need to know: European information-sharing".

NATO and EU have started a joint operation of their KFOR and EULEX missions in the border region between Northern Kosovo and Serbia on October 13th.

A recent report by Eurocontrol, a European organisation for the safety of air navigation, demonstrates considerable gaps between the US and European countries in terms of the total number of fighter aircraft and density in military traffic in 2010.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen yesterday called for enhanced collaboration between NATO and the European Defence Agency (EDA) amid current economic austerity to avoid duplication of efforts.

Chief of Defence of the Danish Armed Forces General Knud Bartel, was elected by NATO’s 28 Chiefs of Defence as the Alliance’s new Chairman of the Military Committee.

On September 15, the Polish-US missile agreement entered into force, allowing the US to place land-based interceptors on a Polish military base.

US and Pakistani military leaders met on the weekend in an attempt to improve ties between the two countries, which have been strained by the US killing ofAl-Qaeida leader Osama Bin Laden in May 2011.

German Defence Minister Thomas de Maizière arrived yesterday in Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, to visit German troops and prepare their gradual pull-out, to be completed by 2014.

On June 29 the Security & Defence Agenda organised an international conference entitled “Shaping NATO’s reform agenda” with the support of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, NATO, Lockheed Martin, IBM, the Atlantic Council and the Euro-Atlantic association of Belgium.

The signing of a US-Romania agreement on missile defence cooperation yesterday renewed Russian concerns about NATO’s ballistic missile defence.

France is preparing a review of its defence strategy for 2012, as explained by Francis Delon, Secretary General for National Defence and Security, on September 6th.

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta acknowledged progress of the US-led troops in Afghanistan in weakening the Taliban, but complained about the insufficient performance of the Afghan government.

Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski announced on September 2nd that Spain and Italy have decided to join an initiative to boost a common EU defence policy.

On September 1st senior officials from 63 countries gathered in Paris for an International Conference on Libya and pledged a continuing support for Libya’s revolution. All nations committed to return frozen assets to the Libyan people.

Top NATO official in Kosovo Gen. Erhard Buhler announced on August 29 that, due to the lasting violence on the Kosovo-Serbia border since late July following a ban on Serbian goods, NATO-led KFOR troops remain “in the lead to control the border […] at least until the end of September”.

Finnish Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen has denied Finland’s intentions to join NATO due to expected defence cuts.

The Pentagon’s spokesperson, Col. Dave Lapan confirmed on August 24 that Libya’s chemical weapons stockpiles are « secure » including 10 tons of mustard gas that Col. Gaddafi was entitled to dispose of after joining the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in 2004.

Op-Ed by Giles Merritt

The collapse of the Ghaddafi regime is focusing international attention on the need for peacekeeping in post-conflict Libya. But policymakers should be looking further afield than Libya and considering a new collective security framework for the Maghreb region as a whole. In short another NATO, but this time called the North Africa Treaty Organisation.

As Libyan rebels continue to consolidate their hold on Tripoli, NATO ambassadors met on August 23 to consider post-conflict options for the alliance. NATO’s spokesperson Oana Lungescu stressed that NATO would serve only a supporting role with a stabilisation mission led by the United Nation and the Contact Group.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen declared on Monday that the sooner Gadhafi "realizes that he cannot win the battle against his own people, the better." He asserted the Alliance’s presence in Libya and its commitment to protect the people of Libya.

Stefan Wallin, Finland’s newly appointed Defence Minister, announced that further defence cuts justify Finland joining NATO. However, Wallin's position has been rejected by military chiefs, who argue that Finland would require a larger defence budget to conform to NATO’s operational and equipment standards.

Recently leaked US cables show how close the EU recently came yo dropping its arms ban against China, imposed in the wake of the 1989 Tiananmen Squqre massacre. The document outlines the positions of 12 member states who took part in a "heated" debate in the EU's Political and Security Committee in Brussels in April 2004. France, the strongest pro-China advocate, said "the embargo is anachronistic and must go".

In the SDA evening debate, NATO's top civilian official in Kabul Simon Gass stressed the need to build support for the transition among the Afghan population by improving governance and the rule of law. He said the international community needs to reassure Afghans that it won't abandon them after 2014.

Italy’s Minister of Defence Ignazio La Russa has announced the withdrawal of an aircraft carrier from the NATO mission in Libya because of the pressing financial situation. "We have cut back costs in Libya, from a forecast 142 million euros in the first half of the year to less than 60 million euros for the second half,"

Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has nominated Ismet Yilmaz as the new Defence Minister. Erdogan’s announcement came after his AKP party won national elections on June 12.

As Poland takes over the EU’s rotating presidency it has announced that EU-NATO cooperation and 'pooling and sharing' will be among its priorities. In a letter to Catherine Ashton, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Poland together with France and Germany called for a need to “improve EU capacities to plan and to conduct operations and to create synergies in times of scarce resources”.

To the mark the final overseas political tour of his office, Robert M. Gates, US Secretary of Defense, addressed a distinguished gathering at the Security & Defence Agenda (SDA) in Brussels on June 10.

According to Kommersant, the daily Ukrainian newspaper, referring to a secret document on Ukraine's programme with NATO for 2011, indicates Ukrainian President Yanukovych is seeking closer ties with the Alliance.

Russia’s Admiral Chabanenko destroyer from the Northern Fleet will make a port call at the Norfolk US naval base today in preparation for joint naval drills with NATO warships. Admiral Chabanenko, an Udaloy II class destroyer, will take part in the FRUKUS 2011 exercises

Internal divisions are rising within NATO on whether the alliance is capable of making the crucial push to remove Colonel Muammer Gaddafi from power. Robert Gates, US secretary defense, British and French navy heads are among the main critics, asking whether the NATO has what it takes to finish the mission.  Speaking at the Security & Defence Agenda last Friday, Gates cautioned that the military capabilities in Europe “simply aren’t there”.

The Czech defence minister Alexandr Vondra announced on Wednesday that his country would not host an early warning center assessing data for a US missile shield in Europe.

Following his warning to NATO members on finances in his SDA speech on 10 June, US Secretary of Defence Gates reiterated his critique on Wednesday to members of the US Senate Appropriation Committee, adding that this could eventually force the United States to move away from the alliance.

Polish defence minister Bogdan Klich announced on Monday the signing of an agreement with the United States on the deployment of aircraft and training staff to help strengthen EU military capacity begining in 2013. This engagement is the first step in creating a regional hub for NATO air operations in Central Europe.

Russia has opposed the arrival of a US Navy cruiser equipped with a ballistic missile defense system in the Black Sea to take part in naval exercises with Ukraine, calling it a threat to its national security

Speaking in a closed meeting for NATO defence ministers in Brussels, Robert Gates, US Secretary of Defense, called out Germany and Poland for assisting too little in the Libya air campaign. Spain, Turkey and The Netherlands were also among those who received harsh words from Gates

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen yesterday rejected the Russian proposal on missile defence. Russia has indicated it would be ready to concede on installations of missile defence facilities in Eastern Europe if NATO provides assurances the system would not be directed against Russia.

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates is planning to eliminate concerns about a declining US presence in Asia at a security conference in Singapore this week.

For the first time in history, a Russian submarine will participate in a NATO rescue exercise. The drill is set to last from 30 May to 10 June and will see the Russian submarine dive off the Spanish Mediterranean coast alongside Spanish, Turkish and Portuguese vessels.

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act. With a clear majority of 322 in favour to 96 against, congressmen and women gave their blessing to a $ 690bn defence budget for next year.

Britain and the United States will set up a new security body this year. Details about the new board will be unveiled later this week during US president Obama’s visit to London.

After issuing serious threats and warning of a new cold war era should the European missile defence shield be implemented without Russian involvements, Moscow on 21 May said it may accept the shield under certain conditions.

NATO secretary-general Anders Fogh Rasmussen expressed his support for NATO-Russia cooperation in missile defence.

In the lunch discussion organised by the Security Defence Agenda and the United States Mission to the European Union, high ranking US officials presented an American perspective on the sharing of passenger name records (PNR).

In a move to foster international cooperation on providing a free and secure internet, White House presented a set of policy proposals on 16 May. According to US president Obama, the initiative represents “not only a vision for the future of cyberspace but an agenda for realizing it”.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has written a letter to NATO heads of state on 14 May, explaining the Russian position on a European missile defence shield.

China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde is set to visit the United States next week. Leaders in Washington hope to initiate a defence dialogue with China’s highest ranking officer, who will stay in the United States for one week officials say.

Italy will provide rebels in Libya with weapons, Abdul Hafiz Ghoga, vice chairman of the National Transitional Council told the press on 7 May.

The Deveselu Air Base near Caracal in Romania will host a U.S. ballistic missile defence system of the “Aegis Ashore System”, US and Romanian authorities announced on 3 May.

Paris authorised on Sunday 3 April the additional deployment of 400 soldiers to its former colony Ivory Coast, boosting its force numbers to 1.500. The initial peacekeeping force has been deployed since a civil war broke out in 2002 and remained active after 2004, despite a separate UN peacekeeping operation.

A Franco-British command will most likely take the lead in the Libyan military operation. US Defence Secretary Robert Gates spoke of a “British and French command,” on Sunday, March 20 confirming the Obama administration's desire to take a back seat in this operation. A NATO command is also under discussion. Robert Gates added that the command handover could take place “in the coming days.”

A few hours after the UN Security Council authorised a no fly-zone and military intervention in Libya, Moussa Koussa, Libyan Foreign Minister announced the “immediate cease-fire and the stoppage of all military operations against rebels.” He expressed “sadness” about the no-fly zone because it “will have a negative impact on the general life on the Libyan people." Only hours before the announcement Gaddafi a his television broadcast stated soldiers loyal to the regime would show “no mercy and no pity” to the rebels in Benghazi.

The UN Security Council today passed a resolution authorising a no-fly zone and military intervention in Libya. After weeks of negotiations the Security Council agreed on “all necessary measures short of an occupation force” to be taken to protect the country’s citizens. Brazil, China, Germany, India and Russia abstained. US Ambassador Susan Rice stated that the UN had answered the call for help of the Libyan people.

NATO Defence Ministers agreed on a new task force to explore joint military capabilities. Due to defence cuts NATO will seek to expand joint operations and multinational capability development. The new task force will consist of NATO, ACT and member states officials.

US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said Wednesday evening that the US administration is pushing for a UN resolution that authorises not only a no-fly zone but also air strikes. “We are discussing very seriously and leading efforts in the Council around a range of actions that we believe could be effective in protecting civilians," Rice said. Due to the fast evolving situation, Washington sees “inherent limitations” regarding the protection of civilians.

Executive Chairman Antoine Bouvier of European missile maker MBDA said yesterday that the US pull-out from the Medium Extended Air Defence System (MEADS) programme “surprised and disappointed” him. The US administration seems not to have consulted with its European allies before making its decision to pull out of the programme.

Europol’s Joint Supervisory Body (JSB) underwent its first inspection of the Terrorist Tracking Programme (TFTP) Agreement between the EU and the US, which came into force in August 2010. The JSB raised serious concerns about the compliance with data protection principles such as the principles of proportionality and necessity.

The European Council met in an extraordinary session on Friday 11 March to discuss the developments in Libya and the Southern neighbourhood region. Despite strong calls by France and the UK to impose a no-fly zone the European Council opted out of mentioning this option in their communiqué. However, a window was left open on this subject. "In order to protect the civilian population, member states will examine all necessary options, provided that there is a demonstrable need, a clear legal basis and support from the region."

The international community continues to debate imposing a no-fly zone over Libya. US officials say the plan remains an option under consideration but warn of the risks involved. Addressing Congress on Wednesday Secretary of Defence Robert Gates stated it would require “a big operation “to impose a no-fly zone over Libya since it would involve attacking the country’s air defences.

A report from the House of Commons states that Britain’s policy in Afghanistan lacks a clear security justification and is failing to create a more stable government. The Committee’s report provides the harshest parliamentary assessment yet of the counter-insurgency campaign in Afghanistan and criticises the political leadership.

In a clear change of tone, Britain, France and Germany have issued declarations calling for the transition of power in Egypt to begin “now”, rather then the "orderly transition" advocated earlier this week. The announcements, mirroring similar shifts in US and Turkish diplomacy, come as protestors in Cairo prepare for the “day of departure”, which many commentators believe could bring about the end of the Mubarak regime.

As anti-government protests in Egypt enter their second week, the EU response continues to come under scrutiny. With the death toll over the weekend alone reaching 100 and footage of military aircraft “buzzing” the defiant protestors in Cairo occupying the Western media, a flurry of declaratory statements has been the strongest action to emanate from the EU bloc. The EU seems divided between the desire to support a democratic uprising, and the need the “hedge their bets” in the face of these largely spontaneous protests.

NATO’s theatre ballistic missile defence (TBMD) system has completed initial testing in Uedem, Germany, inaugurating the next stage of the Alliance’s efforts to create an integrated missile defence command and control apparatus. The handing over of NATO’s Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence Programme to military planners is the first step forward since the Lisbon Summit, where members asserted their commitment to developing a robust missile defence capacity for Europe.

Prominent euro-federalist organisation and European Parliament lobbyists, the Spinelli Group, have urged greater European integration to tackle the host of problems that beset the EU. Former German foreign minister Joschka Fischer and the co-president of the Parliament's Green group, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, were amongst the voices lamenting the Unions sprawling sovereign debt crisis, lack of international voice and declining global stature.

As budget cuts begin to bite in Washington, Europe may feel the effects of the financial crisis on the transatlantic relationship in unexpected ways, warns European Voice analyst, Bruce Stokes. Pointing to the flurry of consolidation plans published in the US by the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform earlier this week, Stokes anticpates severe implications for Europe, in both it's military and economic relations with the US.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has announced a $78bn (£50.3bn) military budget cut for 2011, designed to end what he describes as a "culture of endless money where cost was rarely a consideration" in the Pentagon. The move comes just 6 months after the US announced $100bn in savings for the coming 5 years, making the Pantagon's current policy of fiscal retrenchment the harshest since the end of the Cold War.

A panel of experts discussed the future of NATO and the transatlantic relationship. Focusing on the ongoing mission in Afghanistan and European relations with the US, the debate revolved around the need for reform, reinvigorated partnerships with regional powers and new models of cooperation in an increasingly unstable world.

The worlds largest and most powerful military alliance has unveiled its New Strategic Concept, the document that formally outlines its strategic posture and role in the world. Despite controversy, the alliance has unanimously backed the draft.

Maj. Gen. Mark A. Barrett, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Plans and Policy at NATO Allied Command Transformation, introduces this report on “Protecting the global commons.” He and a number of prominent policy-makers, military and civilian, focus on the dual requirements of promoting stability and protecting access within the global commons, comprised of the space, maritime and cyber domains.

In this exclusive SDA report, US Deputy Secretary of Defense William J. Lynn III gives his perspective on cybersecurity issues today. With participants from accross the transatlantic security community present, the debate focused on the threat of cyber attack, the importance of transnational cooperation and the role of NATO in this evolving field.

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen headed a high-level panel discussed the future of the Alliance, the implications of the financial crisis on the defence sector and the way ahead in Afghanistan.
"NATO's European Dimension" was organised with Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, and was attended by 500 particpants. .

During this innovative online experiment, leading think-tanks got together with the SDA to organise a 5-day brainstorm that was supported by NATO and the EU. The recommendations that emerged from this brainstorming event have been sent around the world.

Experts from NATO, McAfee, the EU, the European Parliament and various thinks-tanks spoke in this sometimes heated debate, which focused on the threat of so-called "weapons of mass disruption" that were emerging from cyberspace.

In December 2009 the Security & Defence Agenda organised an international conference “NATO, the credit crunch and the new security environment” with the support of the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Hewlett Packard, Lockheed Martin and NATO. The discussions focused on the challenges facing NATO with the current economic crisis and the ever-changing global security paradigm. The SDA is pleased to present the principal conclusions of the conference in this report.

On Monday 7 December, the SDA hosted the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Admiral James Stavridis. He outlined his views on the enduring value of the NATO alliance, offered an update on the way the mission in Afghanistan is developing and shared his thinking on the issues to be addressed from a military perspective in developing the new Strategic Concept.

The SDA is pleased to present its latest Discussion Paper entitled “Re-launching NATO or just re-branding it?” At a decisive time for NATO, experts tackle critical questions over the Alliance’s new strategic consensus, including France’s return to NATO’s military command, the relationship between NATO and European security and defence policy (ESDP), and the Obama Administration’s own security and defence agenda.

Speaking to 180 ambassadors, policymakers, journalists and think-tankers at the SDA’s June 8th evening debate, new US Ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder outlined the Obama administration’s policy priorities for the alliance. He described the administration’s focus within the Alliance as being three-fold: achieving its objective in Afghanistan of disrupting, dismantling and defeating Al Qaeda, creating a more productive NATO-Russia relationship, and building a ‘new NATO for a new century’ which is capable of addressing a host of evolving transatlantic security challenges.

The role of international institutions is being challenged by the growing complexity and unpredictability of today’s strategic environment. This context stretches the transatlantic community’s capabilities and political cohesion, severely testing NATO’s credibility as a constructive global security player.

On January 26th, at the beginning of the year marking the 60th anniversary of NATO, its Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer gave his first public announcement after the inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. The Secretary General set out his vision for the future of NATO and transatlantic relations before an audience of 170 policymakers, industry experts, think-tankers and journalists.

On Monday 19th January 2009, the SDA kicked off the European political year with a stimulating discussion co-organised with sister think-tank Friends of Europe on Turkey’s European Future. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan put a powerful case for Turkey as future member of the European Union to a distinguished gathering of senior politicians, policy makers, managerial executives and journalists.

The SDA session was timely given Brigadier Carleton-Smith’s October declaration that “a decisive military victory” against the Taliban should not be expected.

SACEUR General John Craddock questioned whether NATO’s member nations’ political will matched the Alliance’s ambition. Given the many caveats that limited his forces’ options, he argued that the political will was “irresolute”. Stressing that the “comprehensive approach” meant that all international bodies had to work together, General Craddock insisted that the insurgency-funding narcotics trade was the prime target. With the Taliban earning millions of dollars per annum, there was no time to lose.

Co-organised with the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), this evening event examined Nick Witney's recent report entitled 'Re-energising European Security and Defence Policy.' Describing his report as a rather unflattering account of the first 10 years of ESDP, Nick Witney explained that his criticism was directed mainly at the member states for failing to reform their militaries, rather than those in Brussels. The discussion also focused on transatlantic cooperation, effective spending strategies, and defence industry priorities.

The Security & Defence Agenda (SDA), the European Company for Strategic Intelligence (CEIS) and the Robert Schuman Foundation are proud to present this Security & Defence Days 2008 conference report “The Outlook for European Security”. It reflects the contributions of the 27 speakers and 280 participants at this two-day conference on EU security policy issues held on November 3 & 4 November 2008.

Some 120 experts gathered in Brussels to discuss the chief ESDP weaknesses to be tackled and debate what the impact will be of France's return to NATO. Though the debate almost got sidetracked by discussions of the skirmishes in Georgia, participants discussed whether the French Presidency's agenda was too ambitious, and many voices agreed that the Presidency's call for informal high-level meetings between NATO and EU leaders was a way forward.

The event, which took place on May 27, 2008, comprised a keynote address by Araz Azimov, Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan, followed by a question and answer session.

The event focused on current developments in the field of security and defence technology including transatlantic interoperability, funding and civ-mil cooperation.

On 14 April, the Security & Defence Agenda together with the Atlantic Council of the United States organised a transatlantic roundtable on the question of EU-US defence cooperation. With two panels and 14 high-level speakers both in Brussels and in Washington, the debate proved to be highly fruitful and a start for more transatlantic dialogue on this subject.

The Security & Defence Agenda is pleased to present you the report of its 2008 International Conference "NATO in the Next Decade - The Outlook for European Security and Defence". The event was co-organised with the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Hewlett Packard, Lockheed Martin and NATO.

Romania will be hosting the next NATO Summit in Bucharest on 2-4 April this year. On 12 March the Security & Defence Agenda hosted Romania’s Ambassador to NATO Sorin Dumitru Ducaru, US Ambassador to NATO Victoria Nuland and Belgium’s Ambassador to NATO Baron Frans van Daele.

What do you do when your two keenest admirers want to join your party, but your biggest and most difficult neighbour wants to keep them out? That is the dilemma which NATO's 26 political leaders are set to tackle in Bucharest this week, when they plan to discuss whether to offer Georgia and Ukraine a membership plan despite Russian opposition.

Following a fascinating debate that ranged from bullet-proof hosting to onion-routing, the conclusion had to be that the cyber security threat was evolving rapidly and was touching all aspects of society. Its political importance is also increasing and in a cyber society that “has no rules or borders, according to Estonia’s Minister of Defence Jaak Aaviksoo, there is a need for improved coordination at the highest level.

Adriano Martins of the European Agency for Reconstruction advocated success in his organisation’s operations, most notably in the Balkans. International Crisis Group’s Alain Délétroz made a case that the EU should be developing its own capacities, via the ESDP, eluding to a permanent civ-mil response HQ in Brussels. Giuliano Porcelli of the Council of the EU, envisioned the tangible improvements in the EU’s operational capabilities for responding to international disasters, vis-à-vis a Lisbon Reform Treaty ratification, that would streamline decision-making when time matters most.

Since Turkey created the on-call multinational Black Sea Naval Cooperation Task Group in the first quarter of 2001, disagreements over how best to secure this sensitive maritime domain have apparently been overcome as activity coalesces around Turkey's 'Black Sea Harmony' (BSH) programme.

Speaking at the latest SDA Dinner, EU Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry Günter Verheugen placed cooperation at the top of his priority list. All of the major players had to work together if Europe was to develop a defence and security culture, and thereby guarantee the protection of the EU’s borders and critical infrastructure. At the same event, Dr. Thomas Diehl, CEO of the Diehl Stiftung, said industry was ready to meet the challenges of the 21st century. To do this, however, he wanted a level-playing field for the EU’s defence and security companies, internally and externally. Regarding the internal level playing field, intra-EU export regulations and offsets were addressed.

At the end of an enlightening debate on the private security phenomenon, there was clear agreement that further regulation of the sector was required. With a scope that was seen to include security sector reform (SSR), disarmament, demobilisation & reintegration (DDR), the administration of voter registration programmes, static guarding of critical infrastructure, monitoring activities, police training, assistance in prison services, peace negotiating, protection of senior figures, protection of humanitarian aid workers and airport security – at Baghdad airport – that was no surprise.

On June 13, 2006, European Defence Agency Chief Executive Nick Witney and Security & Defence Agenda Director Giles Merritt co-chaired an expert level seminar focussing on the nature and the drivers shaping the future military environment. The meeting came at a time as the EDA is undertaking detailed analysis, using a range of conceptual approaches, aimed at developing an initial long-term vision for European capability and capacity needs. Experts examined questions arising from consideration of European internal and global security in the coming decades. Major factors influencing future capability needs identified include continued EU geographical proximity to sources of instability, new military and technological challenges, greater EU Member State cooperation, global economic, demographic and political change, civil-military co-operation and a further shift towards crisis prevention and management.

At the latest SDA roundtable, there was general agreement that network centric capabilities would define the future of the defence industries on both sides of the Atlantic. However, the key word there was “future”. With such capabilities still in their infancy, it became apparent that – despite repeated requests from industry – a coordinated European approach did not exist. As SDA Director Giles Merritt noted, network centric capabilities seemed to be still in the Middle Ages and the route towards an Age of Enlightenment was not clearly lit

“THE TIMES THEY-ARE-A-CHANGING”
That’s what Bob Dylan sang back in the sixties, and moderator Brooks Tigner had a similar message when he opened the latest New Defence Agenda roundtable on the status of the transatlantic defence marketplace. He wanted panellists to focus on today’s situation and he did not want to hear about the history of transatlantic co-operation. And Tigner got exactly that. All the panellists said exactly what they thought and it was not all good. If one word could sum up the mood of the morning, it was frustration. But in the afternoon, after a light lunch, a new panel under Giles Merritt’s careful guidance saw things in a different light. Several panellists reminded the meeting that defence and security requirements were international and not limited to a particular geographic sector.

Ambassador Nicholas Burns opened his remarks by confirming the US’s firm commitment to NATO, a commitment that came from “every level and every branch of the US government”. Ambassador Burns stated that a strong NATO alliance was the basis of American policy. Despite well-publicised differences, he noted that the Alliance had proved to be “a flexible and supple instrument”.

Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) made the first of a series of speeches leading up to the June 28-29 Istanbul Summit at the NDA Defending Global Security Conference at the Palais d'Egmont on May 17th. NATO will showcase its new plan for defending security by projecting stability. This will be done by strengthening relations with the Balkans, in the Caucasus, in Central Asia and in the Mediterranean; through military operations in the Balkans, Afghanistan and Active Endeavour in the Mediterranean Sea; and by modernising forces organisation and deployment for newer operations far from home.

The New Defence Agenda June roundtable set out to assess future military threats and in particular, how Europe should react to them. The first session, focusing on European security, developed into a power struggle between the US, with its “act now” approach, and a Europe, that wanted to give more thought to the root causes of terrorism and, in parallel, to avoid total dependence on the US. The afternoon session looked at intelligence, where a majority of speakers felt confident about the efficiency of data gathering and processing and a vocal minority warned of complacency in that area.

The fifth session of the Defence-led R&D and Industrial Innovation working group looked at two strategic issues: the working of the proposed European Defence Agency and the future of warfare itself.

At the fifth session of the European Capabilities and Security Aims working group, it was agreed that the Headline Goal would be met in quantitative terms by year end. Serious concerns remained however, in the key areas of availability; mobility, intra-operability and sustainability.