Amid an atmosphere of growing uncertainty between the US and EU ever since Donald Trump took control in Washington, Brussels is pushing ahead with its long-awaited plan for an integrated European fighting force.
Talk of creating a European army seems about as old as Europe itself; French President Charles de Gaulle first proposed the idea shortly after the end of World War II. This week, however, Brussels took the first step in making that dream a reality as it convinced 23 members of the 28-strong entity to join the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) defense initiative.
Although details regarding PESCO’s primary duties remain unclear, early reports say the fighting force will coordinate “defense planning, operations and weapons development,” with the potential for “rapid deployment” to crisis zones, Reuters reported.
Just a stone’s throw from NATO headquarters in Brussels, European foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, called the deal a “historic moment in European defense.”
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel also gloated over the initiative, saying it represented a “great step toward self-sufficiency and strengthening the European Union’s security and defense policy – really a milestone in European development.”
But not everyone was ready to break out the champagne. The UK, which is now going through the painful formalities of leaving the EU, maintains its opposition to an independent European army.
“We are going to continue to oppose any idea of an EU army or an EU army headquarters, which would simply undermine NATO,” Defense Minister Michael Fallon told an EU assembly meeting last September, as talk of the EU fighting force was gaining ground. “We are leaving the European Union, but we remain committed to the security of Europe and putting more troops into Estonia or Poland next year.”
full story at https://www.rt.com/op-edge/409966-nato-europe-russia-army-war/