WRITTEN QUESTION P-3214/00

by Enrique Barón Crespo (PSE) to the Council

(20 October 2000)

Subject: EU-UN co-operation on crisis management and conflict prevention

On 15 September a meeting of the UN and the EU took place to discuss co-operation in the area of crisis management and conflict prevention.

What was the agenda of this meeting and what were the conclusions?

Were these issues discussed again when Mr Kofi ANNAN visited Europe?

What is the EU position on co-operation with the UN in this area, and what role should the UN be given in the elaboration of the Helsinki agreements concerning CFSP?

What could be the EU's concrete contribution towards strengthening the capacities of the UN in crisis management and conflict prevention?

Will these issues be discussed during the upcoming European Council meeting?

What will be the future format of dialogue between the UN and the EU on crisis management and conflict prevention?

Reply

(20/21 December 2000)

1. The ministerial meeting to which the Honourable Member refers was held in New York on 13 September 2000 between the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr Kofi Annan, and the EU ministerial troika composed of the President of the Council, Mr Hubert Védrine, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, Mrs Lindh, the European Commissioner for External Relations, Mr Patten, and the Secretary-General of the Council/High Representative of the EU for the CFSP, Mr Javier Solana.

2. The agenda for that meeting was devoted to cooperation between the EU and the United Nations in the area of crisis management. The meeting provided both parties with the opportunity to restate ongoing developments in this area in the context of their respective organisations and to voice their joint hope for increased cooperation in this field. Following the invitation issued by the President of the Council in his address to the General Assembly on 12 October 2000, the parties agreed at the ministerial meeting to continue their dialogue on this topic during a visit to Europe by the United Nations Secretary-General.

3. In the context of this visit, and in the wake of the meetings held with the Commission and the European Parliament, Mr Annan met Mr Védrine in Paris on 4 October 2000 and Mr Solana in Brussels on the following day for further EU/UN discussions on the possibilities for cooperation in this field. In this connection, Mr Annan proposed establishing cooperation and coordination procedures between the two organisations.

4. With regard to cooperation with the UN, the conclusions of the Santa Maria da Feira European Council reaffirm, inter alia, the commitment to building a Common European Security and Defence Policy capable of reinforcing the Union's external action through the development of a military crisis-management capability as well as a civilian one, in full respect of the principles of the United Nations Charter. In this regard, the European Council emphasised the importance of ensuring a close relationship between the military and the civilian fields in Union crisis management. It also stressed the importance of cooperation between the Union's rapidly evolving crisis-management capability and the United Nations, the OSCE and the Council of Europe. Cooperation with the UN is also fully implicit in the conclusions of the Helsinki European Council, which lay down the objective of reinforcing and facilitating both the UN contributions and activities of the EU when it is a leading player in a particular crisis and independent action by the EU.

5. The Council began internal discussions on the appropriate procedures for actual cooperation between the EU and the UN. At the same time, contacts with the United Nations were stepped up, while in the framework of the conclusions of the Santa Maria da Feira European Council specific themes of interest to both organisations were identified, together with the organisational elements essential to close cooperation. An initial meeting was duly held in Brussels on 24 October between the Committee for Civilian Aspects of Crisis Management and United Nations representatives (in the main from the OCHA (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) and the DPKO (Department for Peace Keeping Operations), together with OSCE and Council of Europe representatives. In addition, the French Presidency organised a seminar in Brussels on 25 October 2000, to which experts from these organisations were invited, on reinforcing the rule of law in crisis management.

6. The Nice European Council will receive a report from the Presidency on the work carried out within the Council on the whole issue of crisis management, including relations with the United Nations in this area. On the question of the framework and detailed arrangements for the dialogue between the two organisations on crisis management and conflict prevention, the Council is not yet in a position to reply at the present stage of discussions both within the EU and with the United Nations and of work on the reorganisation of these activities within the framework of the United Nations (along the lines indicated in the Brahimi report).