EU takes steps towards a Defence Union
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President Federica Mogherini said: "Promoting peace and guaranteeing the security of our citizens are our first priorities as European Union. By facilitating military mobility within the EU, we can be more effective in preventing crises, more efficient in deploying our missions, and quicker in reacting when challenges arise. It will be another step in deepening our cooperation at EU level, also in the framework of the Permanent Structured Cooperation we have formally launched recently, and with our partners, starting with NATO. For us, as EU, cooperation remains the only way to be effective in today's world."
This plan is the next step in the creation of a full-fledged Defence Union by 2025.
"Our objective is to make better use of our transport network, to ensure that military needs are accounted for when planning infrastructure projects. This means a more efficient use of public money and a better equipped transport network, ensuring a quick and seamless mobility across the continent. This is a matter of collective security," said the EU Commissioner for Transport, Violeta Bulc.
By 2019, the Commission will identify the parts of the trans-European transport network suitable for military transport, including necessary upgrades of existing infrastructure (e.g. the height or the weight capacity of bridges).
It will also look at options to streamline and simplify customs formalities for military operations and assess the need to align rules for the transport of dangerous goods in the military domain. In parallel, the European Defence Agency will support the Member States in developing arrangements for cross-border movement permissions.
Improving military mobility also became part of the PESCO commitments, as established in December 2017, and at the project level - with a separate PESCO project. It is also a major deliverable under the EU-NATO Joint Declaration.