From 23 to 27 November 2015, an Expert Level Course on European Armament Cooperation (EAC) takes place in Warsaw, Poland, to further increase knowledge on armament cooperation, and to foster ties among the community.
The course is organised by the European Defence Agency (EDA), the European Security and Defence College (ESDC) and the Austrian Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Sports, and hosted by the Polish Ministry of Defence. It aims at bringing forward various aspects of armaments cooperation at the EU level. Beyond knowledge development, the course serves as a useful networking platform to foster and to harmonise armaments cooperation among the Member States.
The Expert Level Course constitutes a follow-on to an Awareness Level Module held at the EDA premises from 27 to 29 October 2015. Additionally, in order to attend the courses, it is mandatory to complete an Internet-based Distant Learning (IDL) module offered by the ESDC.
“The EDA is fully committed in supporting Member States with education and training initiatives. The high number of participants to this edition of the course confirms that we are going in the right direction. This course represents an important tool for the European cooperation in the armaments domain”, says Massimo Guasoni, the EDA Head of Education, Training & Exercise Unit.
The topics brought on the course agenda include e.g. various aspects of cooperative programmes, research & development in cooperative programmes, harmonisation of the European Military Airworthiness, intercultural aspects in international cooperation and others. Several EDA subject matter experts will share their knowledge and experiences with the course participants.
Background
The European Defence Agency has been working towards establishing a proper training frame in response to the growing needs for harmonised education in the armament acquisition field since 2006. In 2009, the Czech Republic’s EU Presidency supported the creation of a new European armaments cooperation course, providing an EU-wide training platform where a common understanding of a European approach to armaments cooperation could be promoted. The EDA Member States welcomed the initiative and later that year the EDA Steering Board, in the National Armaments Directors configuration, approved the top-level European Armaments Cooperation (EAC) Framework, under which the current course was established.
In 2013, thanks to the initiative of Austria and other like-minded countries, including the Czech Republic, Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, the course took its current form. It followed the success of the pilot European Armaments Cooperation Course organised in Brussels and Stadtschlaining in 2012.
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