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| Europe |
| Euro 'gendarmerie' set up to police the world's trouble spots |
| 2004-09-18 |
| The European Union added a fresh arm to its fast-growing military and police machinery yesterday, launching a fighting "gendarmerie" for quick deployment to trouble spots all over world. EU defence ministers meeting in Holland agreed to back the French-inspired plan for a 900-man force to be operational by December. Comprising French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, and Portuguese units, the gendarmerie - or carabinieri in Italian - will be well-armed and ready for full-scale conflict if necessary. The first commander will be French, with headquarters in Italy. Michelle Alliot-Marie, the French defence minister, said the force was designed for "post-conflict" duties in regions emerging from civil war such as Bosnia, Kosovo and Ivory Coast. She extolled the move as further proof that Europe is coming of age as a genuine military power and added: "When we spoke of European defence 10 years ago, it was utopian; five years ago, it was just talk; now it's a reality." Britain welcomed the scheme but without its own tradition of a militarised police it has no plans to take part. The gendarmerie is one of a plethora of cross-border military, paramilitary, and police bodies sprouting up in the EU, including a Finnish-Swedish force to patrol the Arctic wastes and a Franco-Spanish anti-terrorist police corps. The EU's main project is a rapid reaction force, a pool of 60,000 troops, 400 aircraft and 40 warships, backed by a military staff and an intelligence cell in Brussels, supposedly ready for duty worldwide. Critics say it remains a paper army, lacking the basic airlift to project force overseas, or the sort of "smart" weapons that dominate modern warfare. Mrs Alliot-Marie has been pushing for an autonomous EU military force outside Nato control. She is the chief advocate of a strategic alliance between the EU and China to counter American power, a plan that has infuriated Washington. While Britain and France have been working closely together in pushing the EU's defence ambitions, their ultimate vision is starkly different. Paris sees it as part of long-term goal of breaking dependence on Washington: London sees it as a means of locking the EU into the transatlantic structure. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #18 Golly gee whiz -- I am impressed! A whole continent able to support a 900-man unit. Well, shoot -- America might as well pack it up and go home, 'cause Europe will be able to take care of everything, now. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2004-09-19 6:46:45 AM |
| #17 There was a day when Airbus was announced, too. Ah, but that was economic prestige and a job-creator (it also was the beneficiary of subsidies). We'll have to see how much support and use a fighting "gendarmerie" will get. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2004-09-18 9:46:40 PM |
| #16 Zen, I don't think you were hard enuf on her. NATO should be disbanded and all possible economic ties to France cut |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-09-18 9:23:07 PM |
| #15 She is the chief advocate of a strategic alliance between the EU and China to counter American power, a plan that has infuriated Washington. Does anyone else have the least bit of trouble with what has to be one of the most moronic ideas to ever sluice down the political sewer in several decades? An alliance with communist China? Who the f&%k are these idiots and how do they manage to get to work without causing a head-on collision? NATO should be disbanded instanter should even another whisper of this lunacy happen in official circles. I can only suppose that these same mouth-breathers would have advocated a pact with the Soviet Union to counter American |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-09-18 8:59:57 PM |
| #14 There was a day when Airbus was announced, too. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2004-09-18 7:54:17 PM |
| #13 They announced it, and in Europe that's all that's required. No need to staff, equip or fund it. After all words are more important than deeds - right? |
| Posted by: A Jackson 2004-09-18 7:37:48 PM |
| #12 .com Government has found another use in rivalry: play them against one/another. In the 80's whenopolicemen marched on the Elysee (policemen have the right to demonstrate when not on duty) since they are civilians), the gendarmes (who are military and are forbidden to go on strike or demonstrate) were sent to oppose them. On the other hand police has been traditionally more prone to accept orders for doing illegal or not completely legal things while gendarmes are seen as sticking to the law (and are ill suited for "unclean" jobs since they have to operate in uniform) |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-09-18 6:00:06 PM |
| #11 Cool - great breakdown, JFM -- THANX! The rivalry / competition aspect probably serves to keep them both sharp and professional. That's the theory, anyway! Again, Thanx! |
| Posted by: .com 2004-09-18 4:48:17 PM |
| #10 After TGA's post I feel it would be useful to detail the organization of French law and order forces. There is Police who is civilian and operates in cities and Gendarmerie who is part of military, operates in rural zones and has less restrictive rules of engagement. Gendarmerie doesn't have plain clothes people (Napoleon ruled Gendamerie should be kept honorable). Both have an anti-riot section: CRS for the Police, Gendarmerie Mobile for Gendarmerie. Notice that the anti-riots units are unaffected bt the restriction to rural or city zones but I have been told Gendarmerie Mobile is less brutal than CRS. The guy who was crippled and nearly killed by German hooligans during the world cup was a Gendarme. On the other hand French beaches are not watched by incredibly sexy girls in red bath suits like in Baywatch but by CRS swimmers. Gendarmerie as part of the military has also misions in the defence of the country (during the cold war they were assigned the mission to fight Spetznatz) and Gendarmerie Mobile has at least ine regiment equipped with cannon armed light tanks (its predecessor was destroyed in 1940 by the Germans) Both police and gendarmerie have their own equivalents of SWAT units. It was the "Police SWAT" who killed "Human Bomb" a guy who had wired himself with explosives and threatened to blow himself in a kidergarten (To my strong displeasure I heard people whinning for police not having tried to catch him alive). It was their gendarme counterparts who shot a team of muslim terrorists who had abducted a plane, and apparently wanted to detonate it over Paris. There is an intense rivality between Police and Gendarmerie. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-09-18 4:31:24 PM |
| #9 "...a 900-man force ...will be well-armed and ready for full-scale conflict if necessary. The first commander will be French..." Gotta hand it to those French, they can retreat at almost any scale. |
| Posted by: Tom 2004-09-18 3:27:37 PM |
| #8 France is not an ally. The pre-eminent French strategic goal is the same as it was in De Gaulle's day: countering the American hyperpuissance. Now as then, the tactical approach is triangulation-- tilting toward America's chief enemies (China, the jihadists) enough to seriously undermine our security while still trying to retain the benefits from American hegemony. Perhaps that was possible when MAD governed the behavior of the US and Soviet superpowers, but it's a foolish and reckless game today. Time for us to do a bit more triangulating of our own, with RUssia and India especially. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-09-18 3:19:59 PM |
| #7 The CRS instead are some mean guys. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2004-09-18 2:49:52 PM |
| #6 mojo Clouseau was a policeman ie a civilian and. can't become a general of the gendarmerie who is a branch of the military just like the Coastguard in the US. Now a better idea would be to nominate Clouseau's butler. The one who hides in closets and fridges before bouncing upon him. I would love that butler bounce upon Gicard d'Estaing and give him a series of karate blows. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-09-18 2:46:17 PM |
| #5 The first commander will be French, with headquarters in Italy. Great. General Clouseau... |
| Posted by: mojo 2004-09-18 2:11:46 PM |
| #4 ROFL, Fred! You nailed it. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-09-18 12:33:34 PM |
| #3 Even though female, Michelle is a man like Dominique. |
| Posted by: Fred 2004-09-18 12:06:12 PM |
| #2 now, let me get this straight: is Michelle a man, like Dominique? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-09-18 11:36:43 AM |
#1 French-inspired plan for a 900-man forceHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Thanks. I love starting off my day with a good laugh. The EU: A legend in their own minds. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-09-18 11:29:27 AM |