The precipitous departure from Afghanistan in August 2021, as well as Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and the tragic events currently unfolding in the Middle East, have demonstrated, if proof were needed, that Europeans need to invest more in their defence capacities, and above all to do so in a more coordinated way, so as to be ready to deal with any crisis that may arise outside the Union. This is why in November 2021, I presented a Strategic Compass, defining the next steps to strengthen European defence, which has been approved by all member states in March 2022.

With the close coordination set up via the European Peace Facility to support Ukraine militarily, the arrangements made for the joint purchase of ammunitions, and the training of more than 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers that we have organized jointly in many European countries, we have already made serious progress over the last year and a half in getting our armies and, more broadly, our defence apparatuses to work together with EU level coordination.

The first ever live EU military exercise

This week, we took a further step by organizing the LIVEX, the first ever joint EU live military exercise, near Cadiz in Spain, which I was able to attend with the Chairman of the EU Military Committee, General Brieger, and a number of other senior officers, including the Chief of the Spanish Defence Staff. Under the command of the EU Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC), the EU military headquarter, the exercise mobilised 2,800 soldiers from nine countries (Austria, Spain, France, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Romania) assisted by six ships, helicopters and two jets. This exercise was based on the following scenario: a non-EU country had requested military support from the Union, and the Union had responded positively to this request. Its soldiers landed on a beach, secured a port and advanced inland.

“LIVEX was a test for the future Rapid Deployment Capacity that we have decided to build over the coming months.”

This was a test in particular for the future Rapid Deployment Capacity that we have decided to build over the coming months as part of the Strategic Compass. This exercise has enabled us to get the armies of our member states to work together, and in particular to set up communications systems to coordinate effectively in real time. We plan to organize this type of exercise on a regular basis. The next one will take place during the second half of 2024.

Exchange with the Chief of Defence of EU member states

After witnessing the start of this live exercise, I participated in an EU Military Committee meeting with the Chiefs of Defence from our member states under the chairmanship of General Brieger. We exchanged on the geopolitical situation and in particular on the war in Ukraine and our military support, the difficult situation in the Sahel region, the future Rapid Deployment Capability and the build-up of the EU military headquarter in Brussels, which should become the preferred command structure for EU international missions in the future.

I asked the Chiefs of Defence to convey the message to the political authorities of their respective countries that we need to mobilize more political energy and more resources to meet the ambitious objectives of the Strategic Compass, and to rise to the growing geopolitical challenges that lie ahead.