Military Technology 06/2021

of strategic autonomy, it has launched the Strategic Compass concept. Given that the forces to which the Strategic Compass refers are the same as those that, in other circumstances, would be employed on other mis- sions, we need to create a command, control and communications struc- ture capable of controlling and managing these forces: the NATO ‘Berlin plus’ command and control system can no longer be used. So, the most ‘noble’ part of the task confronting us is the necessity to precisely manage the enablers for such a force. MilTech : Based on the experience gained in recent years with the EU battlegroups, do you foresee a so-called ‘standing army,’ or, rather, a rotational force? General Graziano: We are working on it! The European battlegroups will not be abolished just yet. On the contrary, we will revise and redevelop the battlegroup concept, in order to give them even greater credibility. A key element in the maintenance of a deployable capability will be that of the necessity to conduct exercises and train together, in order to maintain that capability. These are concepts that we want to introduce into the European battle- groups. The original European battlegroup was a more limited force, with around 1,500 pairs of ‘boots on the ground.’ The new force is a reinforced battlegroup, integrated and further developed into a multidimensional con- struct, with transport, mobility and the ability to operate in all theatres. There will undoubtedly be a further revision of the strategic concept of the battlegroup, so that we can have a ‘gap-filler’ to cover needs pending full definition – over the next three to four years – of the rapid deployment capability force. The latter has a time horizon for starting in 2025, so the ‘gap-filler’ will remain the battlegroup, from a conceptual point of view, until at least then. At the moment, the battlegroup is an Italian-led one. MilTech : Can you explain the Coordinated Maritime Presence in the Pacific, please? General Graziano: The Coordinated Maritime Presence is a new tool within the EU’s integrated approach to crisis management, which is mul- tidimensional and focuses particularly on the maritime domain. This new concept is a practical tool for coordinating naval activities in a specific sector, carried out by countries already in that area - such as in the Gulf of Guinea, where Italy, France and Spain are already operating. The EU provides overall coordination to make the operation more successful. This is a simple but effective approach – one that can be used and extended to other areas of the world, such as the Pacific, for example. Indeed, all crisis areas, existing and potential, are surrounded by sea lanes – the same sea lanes through which most of the world‘s illegal trade and trafficking is conducted, whether that be illegal immigrants, weapons or drugs. In this regard, then, an extended ‘Coordinated Maritime Presence,‘ in areas where these phenomena occur, is a rational and simple way to make effective use of available forces. So there are, for example, French na- val forces in the Mozambique Channel that could operate in support of Atalanta, or an operation in the Strait of Hormuz, that could evolve into a coordinated presence mission under European control. This also applies to other areas of the Indo-Pacific, where, given the pre-eminent interest of other countries in the area, a ‘Coordinated Maritime Presence’ would be more effective in successfully coordinating the efforts and synergies of the various actors. The idea is that development of ‘European-flagged’ forces could be achieved, and then become a cornerstone of EU strategy for conflict prevention, crisis control, or Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) operations. MilTech : General – thank you for a laudably clear and frank appraisal of the interesting developments taking place at the EU level to suit the exigencies of the developing global security framework. We look forward to learning more regarding the successful development of policy, strategy, doctrine and capability. General Claudio Graziano, Chairman of the EUMC at the EU Military Committee’s roundtable (EU training mission). Comment MT 6/2021 · 7 (Photos: Council of the EU)