MACEDONIA: The European Union has launched its first military operation in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia.
Soldiers from most EU member-states will be among the 320 troops taking part in the operation, which NATO has commanded until now.
Irish soldiers will not be part of the force, however, because although the peacekeeping mission has the approval of the United Nations, it was not specifically authorised by the UN. Diplomats describe the impediment as a legal technicality and say that Irish service personnel will certainly participate in the next EU operation in Bosnia-Herzegovina next year.
The Macedonian operation, codenamed "Concordia", will provide security for monitors overseeing a peace agreement between the Macedonian majority and minority ethnic Albanians. The force will be commanded on the ground by a French general and the overall operation will be the responsibility of Germany's Admiral Rainer Feist, who is also deputy head of NATO's military forces.
The EU troops, who will wear on their epaulettes the European symbol of golden stars on a blue background, will have access to NATO planning and military assets. In an emergency, the EU force can call on NATO reserves; if the operation goes wrong, it will revert to NATO control.
Speaking outside the Macedonian capital of Skopje, NATO's Secretary-General, Lord Robertson, said that the operation represented an important step for Europe's emerging defence identity.
"As NATO hands over the mission to the European Union, a new chapter in European security has opened. By taking on its first military mission, the EU is demonstrating that its project of a European security and defence policy has come of age," he said.
The launching of the Macedonia mission, which will last for just six months, comes as Europe's fledgling Common Foreign and Security Policy faces its worst crisis to date over Iraq. Although the mission is a small one, its success could give an important boost to the EU's military ambitions, which will take a further step towards realisation if the EU assumes command of the 12,000-strong Sfor operation in Bosnia next year.
The EU plans to launch a 60,000-strong Rapid Reaction Force later this year, but the project has been beset by shortfalls in military capabilities. EU countries are not obliged to participate in any EU-led military operations and the Government has made it clear that Irish forces can only take part in operations which are explicitly authorised by the UN.
Garda personnel are among EU officers currently running a policing operation in Bosnia.
