"Defence cooperation is only way to retain military capabilities"

For its 10th edition which is now available, European Defence Matters, the EDA's official magazine, spoke with Dutch Minister of Defence Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert about the defence-related objectives of the current Dutch EU Presidency, the upcoming EU Global Strategy as well as the importance of European defence cooperation.
 

European Defence Matters, Magazine issue 10

• Minister, one of your goals during the Dutch EU Presidency is to give a fresh boost to defence cooperation. What achievements do you strive for during the EU Presidency?

Defence cooperation is not the easy way but it is the only way, if we want to retain our military capabilities, especially the high end capabilities. Cooperation demands a continuous and active pursuit of possibilities for cooperation and requires a persistent and determined mindset to become successful.

The Netherlands would like to lead by example when it comes to defence cooperation. There are several examples of successful cooperation initiatives, like the France-UK cooperation under the Lancaster House Treaties, the Visegrad 4, NorDefCo and the Baltic Defence Cooperation, but I still think that we need more and closer cooperation. We should go beyond the obvious cooperation areas such as training, logistics and education.

Joint training is a good start, but we have to go further. We should use small scale cooperation that works and build on those. The defence cooperation between Germany and The Netherlands could be used as an example. We are integrating a German tank battalion into a Dutch mechanized brigade, which itself will become part of a German armoured Division. This allows us to maintain our ability to fight with and against tank units, since we no longer have that capability ourselves. Another example is the long standing maritime cooperation between Belgium and the Netherlands, which has been developed to a high level. The cooperation between the BENELUX-countries in protecting their airspace is another promising example.

During our EU Presidency I try to promote all these types of European cooperation where I can. And let’s not forget that these cooperation initiatives, be it for operational purposes or joint capability development, also need some kind of political framework and strategic guidance.

This is why I attach so much value to the EU Global Strategy on Foreign and Security Policy which should be presented by HR/VP Mogherini in June. And I strongly believe that this new strategy should immediately be translated into actionable proposals to strengthen European defence cooperation. A ‘White Book like document’ should describe the CSDP-related tasks and means we need to execute the Global Strategy. It should give us a clear picture of which military capabilities we need the most and so guide our future cooperation efforts.
 

• You mentioned the follow-up document to the Global Strategy, a ‘White Book like document’ as you call it. In your view, what should be its main elements?

We see the Global Strategy, a possible ‘White Book like document’ and finally the European Defence Action Plan as three closely related documents. Essential elements for a ‘White Book like document’ are a clear military level of ambition in line with the Strategy, a description on the capability shortfalls and a proposal for a follow-up mechanism to monitor the progress at the political level.
 

• The Netherlands are a forerunner in terms of defence cooperation. Your country has a history of successful cooperation with Belgium and Luxembourg for example. The latest example is the conclusion of far-reaching cooperation agreements with Germany. What are the lessons learnt?

We have learned that for cooperation to be successful, partners should start as early as possible in the capability development process to identify shared interests. It is easier to find common ground when all options are still open.

We have experienced that extending the scope of cooperation beyond the purchase of equipment into operations, maintenance and organization helps too. Requirements become more aligned and the relationship for the long term is bound to contribute to successful cooperation.

Finally, it is important to have support at all levels. After all, it is a matter of commitment and trust. This is why the political level, the policy level and the executive level should all be involved.
 

• But you are also active in many multinational programmes through EDA. What type of cooperation do you think gets most out of taxpayers' money?

As an ideal, the taxpayers’ money would be best spent when a programme is aimed at addressing a shortfall at the European level, which corresponds to the national needs of a large number of Member States. A good example of such a combination of goals is the European Air Transport Command at Eindhoven.

Furthermore, taxpayers are, in the long run, best served by a well-functioning European Defence market and a strong European industrial base which are not hampered by barriers. If the market functions well, we are more capable of developing innovative, high-end military capabilities in Europe. I think this would benefit the taxpayer, but more importantly, it benefits our armed forces.
 

• To what extent has the Dutch defence industry benefitted from the country’s cooperative approach?

The Dutch defence industry consists mostly of medium and small enterprises that offer high quality contributions to capability development. However, our cooperative approach does not automatically benefit our own national industry.

We see that the defence industry in Europe is subject to national considerations. For SMEs especially, it therefore remains difficult to gain cross border access to defence and security contracts, even within the framework of cooperative programs. The result is that the competitive and innovative power of our European defence industry does not reach its full potential, something which we cannot afford if we really want to gain a degree of strategic autonomy in this market.
 

• If you look at the upcoming Preparatory Action on defence research and the Commission’s Defence Action Plan: how do you see these two major initiatives develop? Will they be a game-changer for the sector?

The Preparatory Action, as part of the European Commission Action Plan, will certainly be a game changer, if it succeeds in preparing the way for a dedicated European defence research programme. First of all, this initiative shows that the European Commission is involved and committed to strengthen European defence. Secondly, investing in R&T makes it more attractive for the defence industry to focus on non-dual use technology, being commercially less attractive, but essential nonetheless. Thirdly, the Preparatory Action and the subsequent dedicated research programme will serve as an incentive for joint capability development further down the line, when R&T efforts are used to develop real capabilities.