Western Europe

Britain blocks permanent EU military headquarters

By David Brunnstrom and Christopher Le Coq, Reuters

From David Brunnstrom and Christopher Le Coq, Reuters:  Britain blocked a proposal to establish a permanent headquarters for EU defence and security operations, saying it would duplicate NATO structures and be an unnecessary expense. The proposal for a permanent Operations Headquarters (OHQ), put forward by Catherine Ashton, the British EU high representative for foreign affairs […]

Britain requests more US support for NATO mission in Libya

By Daniel Dombey and Kiran Stacey, the Financial Times

Britain says sending 4 more warplanes for NATO in Libya

By Reuters

From Reuters:  Britain said on Friday it will send four more Tornado warplanes to support the NATO mission in Libya, in addition to the 12 already deployed. "These are the aircraft which are particularly well equipped for surveillance and reconnaissance, and as the conflict has gone on and the targets have become harder to detect […]

EU defence ambitions stuck in no-man’s land

By AFP

Text of Speech by Lord Robertson on Transatlantic Relations: A Case for Optimism

By Lord Robertson, Chatham House

From Lord Robertson, Chatham House:  In the wake of US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates’ final speech in office, berating as it did European allies for their growing uselessness in the security field, my title may seem at best generous and at worst delusional. I need to explain.

German armed forces fall below European standards

By Deutsche Welle

From Deutsche Welle:  The German armed forces are less efficient and not as deployment ready compared to other European militaries, according to the European Defense Agency (EDA) and a report by the economics magazine Wirtschaftswoche.

NATO SecGen rules out military intervention in Syria

By Andrew Rettman, the EUobserver

From Andrew Rettman, the EUobserver:  Nato head Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said there will be no military intervention in Syria despite similar levels of government-sponsored violence as in Libya. Speaking in Vienna on Thursday (30 June) after a meeting with foreign minister Michael Spindelegger, the Nato chief told press: "We do not foresee any intervention […]