EU to take over from NATO?

I was just reading up on the plans for the EU to take over the peacekeeping mission in Bosnia and their plans for a joint European gendarmerie, or military police.
It seems like another way to make Europe more self-reliant and to end or reduce the influence of the US even in terms of the military.

EU Business:

The new push comes as the EU prepares to deploy a 7,000-strong force to replace NATO-led Stabilisation Force (SFOR) in Bosnia by the end of the year, in what will be by far its biggest military operation yet.

The EU's Althea mission will be only the third such EU force, following a brief French-led mission to quell violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo last year and a 200-strong police mission to Macedonia.

It is seen as a key test of the EU's much-vaunted but long-embattled European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP), and the EU wants to make sure it gets it right.

"The (EU) aims to achieve a smooth transition in mid-December," said the Dutch minister.

Meanwhile another initiative on the table is a French plan for a European gendarmerie force, able to be dispatched at short notice to help tackle crises situations.

Five countries which already have gendarme-type police -- France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands -- are set to back plans which would initially involve an 800-strong force to be deployed rapidly notably to help in the management of situations just after a crisis has occurred.

[edit on 15-9-2004 by AceOfBase]

It's about time Europe started taking on some responsability (the UK not withstanding). The US has been the world peacekeeper for 50 years and has gotten nothing but # for it. For now on, the blackhawk down situations can be on the shoulders of Germany and France

and look where it has taken them... iraq = new vietnam

Originally posted by American Mad Man
The US has been the world peacekeeper for 50 years and has gotten nothing but # for it

LMFAO
Man, i love you your American propaganda makes me laugh alot and brightens up my day, cheers man

Hehe that makes me laugh. Oh how well America have policed the world.

about time Europe starts moving to butt the US out of its military affairs i think the establishment of a EU Military Organization is a good step

Originally posted by American Mad Man
It's about time Europe started taking on some responsability (the UK not withstanding). The US has been the world peacekeeper for 50 years and has gotten nothing but # for it. For now on, the blackhawk down situations can be on the shoulders of Germany and France

France has been taking on some responsibility:

France is the 2nd largest contributor of peacekeeping personnel

Under the command of who 'the germans' 'the french' 'the who'?

Cant say id like to see british forces under the command of foreign generals im not really a pro european yet im I

Our forces are regulary under the command of foreign generals... Nato's supreme commander for example is always an American.

Most UN missions are led by General Mmbongo, or Lt General Croissant or something...

But yeah, down with NATO, its a dinosaur, and it is quite clear that the Americans vision for the world is not shared by...well...the world!

[edit on 17-9-2004 by stumason]

An updated story that shows it is the intention of the French to end reliance on the US for military forces:

Telegraph

The EU's main project is a rapid reaction force, a pool of 60,000 troops, 400 aircraft and 40 warships, backed by a military staff and an intelligence cell in Brussels, supposedly ready for duty worldwide. Critics say it remains a paper army, lacking the basic airlift to project force overseas, or the sort of "smart" weapons that dominate modern warfare.

Mrs Alliot-Marie has been pushing for an autonomous EU military force outside Nato control. She is the chief advocate of a strategic alliance between the EU and China to counter American power, a plan that has infuriated Washington.

While Britain and France have been working closely together in pushing the EU's defence ambitions, their ultimate vision is starkly different. Paris sees it as part of long-term goal of breaking dependence on Washington: London sees it as a means of locking the EU into the transatlantic structure.

Originally posted by stumason
Our forces are regulary under the command of foreign generals... Nato's supreme commander for example is always an American.

Most UN missions are led by General Mmbongo, or Lt General Croissant or something...

But yeah, down with NATO, its a dinosaur, and it is quite clear that the Americans vision for the world is not shared by...well...the world!

[edit on 17-9-2004 by stumason]

umm if you will notice the NATO secretary general is from the netherlands.
and the chairmen of the NATO military committee is from germany.

The language barrier is always going to be a big problem for an EU force,i say we should make everyone speak english (its the lingo of the world)
Of course u just know the Frenchies will not like that but the Germans may accept due to their guilty concionse.....oh well what would the US think of making their relations with the UK official u know the 51st state and all that.

umm if you will notice the NATO secretary general is from the netherlands.
and the chairmen of the NATO military committee is from germany.

That is true..... yup, I was wrong, bugger me! But hey, my point remains the same to the chap that was crying about foreign Generals.

Originally posted by ufo3
The language barrier is always going to be a big problem for an EU force,i say we should make everyone speak english (its the lingo of the world)

Of course u just know the Frenchies will not like that but the Germans may accept due to their guilty concionse.....oh well what would the US think of making their relations with the UK official u know the 51st state and all that.

dude umm i dont get the joke.
hey lay off the germans they are good. hell they barely have an army and its well below their allowed limit. im talking like 5 or 6 times below what they were sanctioned with, i mean the military way of life has been beaten out of them.

I would like to ask this group, since it seems that the US has done such a poor job of things since WWII.

What would the Cold War have been like, and the face of Europe, without the major US presence on the continent?

Sir John Hackett wrote of WWII. I would love to hear his view of the outcome with US 10th Corps removed.

To tell you the truth, though, if we are not wanted, we should leave. Save us gobs and gobs of money.

I would further reccomend you let the French lead as well. Since Napolean, their military history is just chock full of brilliant success.

The Spider

Bugger off then..... you wouldn't let us build huge electronic monitoring stations in your country would you? (these being for monitoring communications, as in mobile phones, e-mails and the like)

Just a silly question. Why did you let us build them, then? And who knows what kind of junk we are letting the UN build here right now. They occupy over 30 military installations in the CONUS as we speak.

The Spider

(I don't feel like buggering off)

WE didn't!


Our US pandering Government let you build them, despite numerous protests by the population at large!

So,

Just to continue this little diatribe, since your government allowed it, that makes us the bad guys? Would you say the good that we have done in the past 60 years has been outweighed by the bad?

The Spider

I didn't say you where the bad guys, you started crying about not being wanted. True, we don't want you here, you don't want to be here.....so.....bugger off then!

As for whose fault it is, I blame the sheeple! Everyone complains about our Government, but no one votes so Joe Public needs to pull his finger out and vote in a Government not full of middle age self serving tossers.

Also, would you care to outline the Good vs Bad for me, this could be interesting.....

[edit on 18-9-2004 by stumason]