The European Union (EU) has undertaken a number of overseas missions and operations, drawing on civilian and military capabilities, in several countries across three continents (Europe, Africa and Asia), as part of its Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). The operation or mission in question will work in agreement and coordination with the EU delegations, until 2009 known as the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
Classification
In the EU terminology, civilian CSDP interventions are called 'missions', regardless of whether they have an executive mandate such as EULEX Kosovo or a non-executive mandate (all others). Civilian missions include uniformed personnel such as Police and Gendarmerie, but not military personnel.
Military interventions, however, can either have an executive mandate such as for example Operation Atalanta in which case they are referred to as 'operations' and are commanded at two-star level; or non-executive mandate (e.g. EUTM Somalia) in which case they are called 'missions' and are commanded at one-star level.
Deployment procedure
The decision to deploy – together with any subsequent management of – the mission or operation in question, will ultimately be taken by the EU member states in the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC).
Military operations may be launched after four planning phases, through which the Operation Commander (Op. Cdr.), Military Staff (EUMS), Military Committee (EUMC), Political and Security Committee (PSC) and Council have different roles.
Command and control structure
The EU command and control (C2) structure is directed by political bodies composed of member states' representatives, and generally requires unanimous decisions. As of April 2019:
- Liaison: Advice and recommendations Support and monitoring Preparatory work
| Political strategic level:[5] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ISS | EUCO Pres. (EUCO) | Chain of command | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordination/support | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SatCen | CIVCOM | HR/VP (FAC) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| INTCEN | HR/VP (PMG) | HR/VP (PSC)[6] | CEUMC (EUMC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| CMPD | DGEUMS[3] (EUMS) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Military/civilian strategic level: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dir MPCC[3] (MPCC) | JSCC | Civ OpCdr CPCC[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operational level: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MFCdr[4] (MFHQ) | HoM[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tactical level: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| CC[2]Air CC[2] Land CC[2] Mar Other CCs[2] European Armed Forces | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
- 1 In the event of a CSDP Civilian Mission also being in the field, the relations with the Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability (CPCC) and its Civilian Operation Commander (Civ OpCdr), as well as the subordinate Head of Mission (HoM), are coordinated as shown.
- 2 Other Component Commanders (CCs) and service branches which may be established.
- 3 The MPCC is part of the EUMS and Dir MPCC is double-hatted as DGEUMS. Unless the MPCC is used as Operation Headquarters (OHQ), either a national OHQ offered by member states or the NATO Command Structure (NCS) would serve this purpose. In the latter instance, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR), rather than Dir MPCC, would serve as Operation Commander (OpCdr).
- 4 Unless the MPCC is used as Operation Headquarters (OHQ), the MFCdr would be known as a Force Commander (FCdr), and direct a Force Headquarters (FHQ) rather than a MFHQ. Whereas the MFHQ would act both on the operational and tactical level, the FHQ would act purely on the operational level.
- 5 The political strategic level is not part of the C2 structure per se, but represents the political bodies, with associated support facilities, that determine the missions' general direction. The Council determines the role of the High Representative (HR/VP), who serves as Vice-President of the European Commission, attends European Council meetings, chairs the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) and may chair the Political and Security Committee (PSC) in times of crisis. The HR/VP proposes and implements CSDP decisions.
- 6 Same composition as Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) II, which also prepares for the CSDP-related work of the FAC.
List of ongoing missions
| Beginning | Name | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| 2 December 2004 | European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina ALTHEA | EUFOR ALTHEA |
| 25 November 2005 | European Union Border Assistance Mission to Rafah | EUBAM Rafah |
| 1 January 2006 | European Union Mission for the Support of Palestinian Police and Rule of Law | EUPOL COPPS |
| 1 October 2008 | European Union Monitoring Mission in Georgia | EUMM Georgia |
| 5 November 2008 | European Union Naval Force Operation Somalia ATALANTA | EU NAVFOR ATALANTA |
| 9 December 2008 | European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo | EULEX Kosovo |
| 10 April 2010 | European Union Training Mission in Somalia | EUTM Somalia |
| 16 July 2012 | European Union Capacity Building Mission in Somalia | EUCAP Somalia |
| May 2013 | European Union Integrated Border Assistance Mission in Libya | EUBAM Libya |
| April 2014 | European Union Capacity Building Mission in Mali | EUCAP Sahel Mali |
| December 2014 | European Union Advisory Mission in Ukraine | EUAM Ukraine |
| 16 July 2016 | European Union Training Mission in the Central African Republic | EUTM RCA |
| 22 November 2017 | European Union Advisory Mission in Iraq | EUAM Iraq |
| June 2019 | European Union Regional Advisory Cell for the Sahel | EU RACC SAHEL |
| 9 December 2019 | European Union Advisory Mission in the Central African Republic | EUAM RCA |
| 31 March 2020 | European Union Naval Force Mediterranean IRINI | EUNAVFOR MED IRINI |
| 17 October 2022 | European Union Military Assistance Mission in Support of Ukraine | EUMAM Ukraine |
| 23 January 2023 | European Union Mission in Armenia | EUM Armenia |
| December 2023 | European Union Security and Defence Initiative in Support of West African Countries of the Gulf of Guinea | EU SDI GOG |
| 24 April 2023 | European Union Partnership Mission in the Republic of Moldova | EUPM Moldova |
| 19 February 2024 | European Union Naval Force Operation ASPIDES | EUNAVFOR ASPIDES |
| 1 September 2024 | European Union Military Assistance Mission Mozambique | EUMAM Mozambique |
List of past missions
| Beginning | End | Name | Abbreviation | Alternative name | Personnel | OHQ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 1991 | 31 December 2007 | European Union Monitoring Mission in the former Yugoslavia | ECMM / EUMM | N/A | ? | ? |
| December 2002 | — | Police Assistance Mission of the European Community to Albania | PAMECA | N/A | ? | ? |
| 1 January 2003 | 30 June 2012 | European Union Police Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina | EUPM BiH | N/A | 774 | ? |
| 31 March 2003 | 15 December 2003 | European Union Military Operation in the Republic of Macedonia | EUFOR Concordia | Operation Concordia | 400 | ACO |
| 12 June 2003 | 1 September 2003 | European Union Military Operation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | EUFOR Artemis | Operation Artemis | 1800 | Paris |
| 15 December 2003 | 14 December 2005 | European Union Police Mission in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia | EUPOL FYROM | EUPOL Proxima | 200 | ? |
| 16 July 2004 | 14 July 2005 | European Union Rule of Law Mission in Georgia | EUJUST Georgia | EUJUST Themis | 27 | ? |
| 12 April 2005 | 30 June 2007 | European Union Police Mission in Kinshasa | EUPOL Kinshasa | N/A | ? | ? |
| 8 June 2005 | 2016 | European Union Security Sector Reform Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | EUSEC RD Congo | N/A | ? | ? |
| 1 July 2005 | 31 December 2013 | European Union Integrated Rule of Law Mission in Iraq | EUJUST LEX Iraq | N/A | ? | ? |
| 18 July 2005 | 31 December 2007 | European Union Support to African Union Mission in Sudan | AMIS EU Supporting Action | N/A | ? | ? |
| 15 September 2005 | 15 December 2006 | European Union Monitoring Mission in Aceh | AMM | N/A | ? | ? |
| 15 December 2005 | 14 June 2006 | European Union Police Advisory Team in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia | EUPAT | N/A | ? | ? |
| 12 June 2006 | 30 November 2006 | European Union Military Operation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2006) | EUFOR RD Congo | N/A | 2300 | ? |
| 15 June 2007 | 31 December 2016 | European Union Police Mission in Afghanistan | EUPOL Afghanistan | N/A | ? | ? |
| 1 July 2007 | 30 September 2014 | European Union Police Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo | EUPOL RD Congo | N/A | ? | ? |
| 12 February 2008 | 30 September 2010 | European Union Mission in Support of Security Sector Reform in Guinea-Bissau | EUSSR Guinea-Bissau | N/A | ? | ? |
| 17 March 2008 | 15 March 2009 | European Union Military Operation in Chad and the Central African Republic | EUFOR Tchad/RCA | N/A | 3700 | ? |
| July 2012 | 30 June 2024 | European Union Capacity Building Mission in Niger | EUCAP Sahel Niger | N/A | ? | CPCC |
| February 2013 | January 2014 | European Union Aviation Security Mission in South Sudan | EUAVSEC South Sudan | N/A | ? | ? |
| 18 February 2013 | 17 May 2024 | European Union Training Mission in Mali | EUTM Mali | N/A | 500 | MPCC |
| 10 February 2014 | 23 March 2015 | European Union Military Operation in the Central African Republic | EUFOR RCA | N/A | 600 | ? |
| 23 March 2015 | 16 July 2016 | European Union Military Advisory Mission in the Central African Republic | EUMAM RCA | N/A | ? | ? |
| 22 June 2015 | 31 March 2020 | European Union Naval Force Mediterranean | EUNAVFOR Med | Operation Sophia | ? | ITA-JFHQ |
| 20 February 2023 | 30 June 2024 | European Union Military Partnership Mission in Niger | EUMPM Niger | N/A | ? | ? |
See also
Related topics of the Common Security and Defence Policy:
- Operations of the European Border and Coast Guard
- Defence forces of the European Union
- History of the Common Security and Defence Policy
Operations and exercises of the precursors of the Common Security and Defence Policy
- Missions of the Western European Union
- Exercises of the Western Union
Operations and exercises of the multinational forces made available to the CSDP in accordance with article 42.3 of the Treaty on European Union:
- List of operations of the European Maritime Force
- List of operations of the European Rapid Operational Force
- List of missions of the European Gendarmerie Force
- List of exercises of the European Maritime Force
- List of operations of the European Corps
Missions and exercises of other organisations:
- List of missions of the United Nations
- List of operations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
- List of exercises of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation
- List of non-UN peacekeeping missions
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