From the EU Observer: German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle has said Berlin supports the long term goal of creating a European army, which will bolster the EU’s role as a global player.

Speaking on Saturday (6 February) at the Munich Security Conference, an annual gathering for high-level discussions on security and defence, Mr Westerwelle said the EU’s new institutional rules, the Lisbon Treaty, are “not the end but, rather, the beginning for common security and defence policy.”

“The long term goal is the establishment of a European army under full parliamentary control,” he said, noting that the German government “wants to advance along this path.”

Mr Westerwelle, who is just a few months into the job as Germany’s top diplomat as part of a ruling Christian Democrat and liberal coalition, suggested that moving further on common security and defence will be the “motor for greater European integration.” (photo: euronews)