LISBON EXPLAINED:The treaty's philosophy is based on the idea of "soft power", not on military dominance, writes PATRICK SMYTH
QUITE DISTINCT from the issue of neutrality and the possibility or desirability of EU common defence (these and the retained Irish veto have been dealt with elsewhere), much focus has been placed by the No campaign groups on what they call the “militarisation” of the union.
The term is used to describe what they see as the intrinsically unacceptable evolution of the EU’s security policy, most notably the development of its military dimension since the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 .
Yet if the word “militarisation” has been used to conjure up a sense of warmongering, the EU’s rationale for its military dimension is very much not in the mould of replicating a traditional military alliance established for territorial defence and projecting power, as many would see Nato.
On the contrary, the EU security doctrine, largely inspired by the neutral Swedes and Finns in the mid-1990s, and supported by Ireland, is framed as an expression of a European desire to contribute in a practical way to the international framework of collective security represented by the UN.
In the Lisbon Treaty, it is described as “peacekeeping, conflict prevention, and strengthening international security in accordance with the principles of the Charter”.
This is elaborated in Article 43, paragraph 1, as political, civilian and military tasks which “shall include joint disarmament missions, humanitarian and rescue tasks, military advice and rescue tasks, tasks of combat forces in crisis management, including peacemaking and post-conflict stabilisation.
“All these tasks may contribute to the fight against terrorism, including by supporting third countries in combating terrorism in their countries.”
The philosophy is based on the idea of projecting “soft power” rather than military dominance.
Lisbon reiterates this approach already established in the Amsterdam and Nice treaties and sets out means by which this can be accomplished – urging member states to make civilians and military resources available, and enshrining the establishment of the European Defence Agency to co-ordinate the development of resources (Ireland has reserved the right to opt out of this).
The treaty does not change the unanimity requirement for the establishment of missions and Ireland’s position is additionally safeguarded by its own triple-lock mechanism requiring UN, Government and Dáil sanction.
The EU is involved in 10 such missions, the majority of them civilian, ranging from policing in Kosovo to a navy contingent off Somalia to judges in Iraq. Ireland’s major troop commitment has been to Chad (now a UN mission).