MIL OSI Translation. Government of the Republic of France statements from French to English – Published on August 30, 2018

Topic : Defence, Europe, International, development and francophonie

Declaration of the franco-Finnish on the european defence

Faced with threats multifaceted and more numerous, the Europeans have accelerated their work to achieve a Europe that is stronger, safer and more reliable. In recent years, they have proven concretely that the european defence rested not only on a common analysis of the risks and strategic challenges, but also on a european solidarity. When, after the attacks of 13 November 2015, France has invoked, for the first time in the history of the european Union, the mutual assistance clause under article 42, paragraph 7, of the Treaty on the european Union, Finland has supported with determination, in the framework of a common effort to combat terrorism.

The security of Europe depends on its ability to adapt its resilience to the security challenges it is facing. France and Finland welcomed the progress made in recent months in this area, including efforts to strengthen the capacity of the EU to fight against threats to hybrid and to develop its capacity in strategic communication.

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In June 2016, arguing for a strengthening of the common security and defence policy (CSDP) of the EU, France and Finland have called on the member States to intensify their cooperation in defence matters. Since then, unprecedented headways have been made to achieve this objective. Maintain the mobilization in favour of the practical implementation and operational principle of strategic autonomy of Europe is our common responsibility.

France and Finland are now also pushing to do more, so that people have here to the next decade of an autonomous capacity for military intervention joint stronger to defend their interests of security and defence, based on a european defence industry strong and innovative and on budgetary instruments common adapted.

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In order to promote the operational commitments of the Europeans when their security is at stake, France and Finland call for the emergence of a genuine strategic culture, common european, based on the defense cooperation and interdependence granted. Any bilateral or multilateral cooperation should allow to fight on the front against the terrorist threat, the threats, the hybrids and the politics of power. The european Initiative intervention, which was launched on France’s proposal, has the objective of promoting the emergence of a strategic culture in european policy and to strengthen the ability of Europeans to meet the crises that affect their safety, in parallel to the existing frameworks, including the operations of the EU and NATO.

European cooperation in the field of defence, including the CSDP, must be developed in accordance with the overall strategy of the EU, to play a role as well in external crises than in the protection of the Union and its citizens.

On one side, the european Union has positioned itself to respond to the rise of new threats, in particular threats or hybrid threats, which are in a continuity between the security challenges internal and external challenges the EU is facing. The european Centre of excellence for the fight against threats to hybrids, located in Helsinki, contributes to the development of response strategies to these threats within the framework of the EU-NATO cooperation. The other hand, France and Finland, promote the use of new instruments as well as the increase in the joint funding of the operations in the framework of the interventions of the CSDP to all commitments, including the most demanding ones.

France and Finland fully support the increased funding of european military capacities of the EU partners. They reaffirm their support for the creation of a dedicated instrument to strengthen the coherence and effectiveness of european action in favour of the capacity of the partners in the field of security and defence and welcomes in this regard the proposed creation of a european facility for peace. This tool should be based on the level of ambition of Europe and on a detailed needs assessment of the partners of the EU. France and Finland emphasize the importance of the issues that need to be dealt with in the next few years in sub-saharan Africa.

It is essential for the credibility of Europeans and their ability to contribute to their security to improve military mobility in Europe. France and Finland recall that they are particularly attached to this issue, as evidenced by their strong involvement in all work in this area. They encourage the implementation of the ambitious commitments made by Europeans in this area, in close coordination with work in the EU and NATO.

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European strategic autonomy is also based on the development of a comprehensive set of defense capabilities through the creation of a European Defense Fund, as part of the Coordinated Annual Defense Review (ECAD) and in accordance with the commitments made under permanent structured cooperation (CSP).

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An ambitious CSP should allow a qualitative leap for European defense. Commitments, which materialize our ambition, must be respected. France and Finland, which jointly participate in projects on military mobility, the ESSOR software radio system and cyber defense, are determined to work as closely as possible to the operational realities so that new unifying projects meeting the needs of the armed forces can to be implemented in the coming months.

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France and Finland welcome the European Commission's determination to address the challenges facing the European defense industry, in particular through the creation of a European Defense Fund. These efforts will contribute to European strategic autonomy by promoting technological and industrial cooperation and by building a strong, coherent and innovative European industrial and technological defense base, including support mechanisms for small and medium-sized enterprises.

France and Finland call for an important contribution to European security and defense for the next multiannual financial framework, thanks to ambitious and sustainable funding levels, in particular for the European Defense Fund.

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These efforts will be further enhanced by a strong bilateral and multilateral cooperation network on defense capabilities as well as operational aspects.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article is a translation. Please accept our apologies should the grammar and / or sentence structure not be perfect.