France should propose a lease to buy agreement that would bring the two Mistral ships under EU control and, eventually, common ownership. The strategic rationale for such a bold initiative is compelling. Since 1999, the European Union -- with strong encouragement from successive French governments -- has worked to develop the European political will and capabilities necessary to execute the so-called Petersberg tasks, ranging from humanitarian and rescue missions to post-conflict stabilization. Although the EUs performance to date has disappointed many, European leaders remain committed, by and large, to playing a global role in promoting security commensurate with the EUs economic and diplomatic weight. The Mistrals would provide the EU with a formidable and flexible tool to do just that. With a range of 11,000 nautical miles (at a speed of 15 knots), the Mistral can carry up to 16 heavy (or 30 light) helicopters, four landing craft, and more than 60 vehicles. It is equipped with a 69-bed hospital and can accommodate more than 700 personnel. Since some 44 percent of the global population lives within 150 kilometers of the sea -- a percentage that will grow dramatically in coming decades with rising sea levels -- the EU could become a leading provider and coordinator of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps have regularly performed such roles, and the Royal New Zealand Navys Canterbury was specifically designed to provide tactical sealift for humanitarian and disaster operations. Moreover, the EU would gain an organic capability to conduct noncombatant evacuation operations in contingencies such as the 2011 Libyan conflict. (A French Navy Mistral performed this role in 2006, evacuating several thousand civilians from Lebanon over a two-week period during the Israel-Hezbollah war.) The EU could also use the ships to reinforce maritime surveillance, rescue, anti-trafficking, and counter-piracy missions in the Mediterranean and off the coasts of Africa. With careful scheduling of maintenance and overhauls, the EU likely could keep at least one of the ships available for deployment at all times. A leasing arrangement between the French government and the European Defense Agency, with France providing the initial 160-person crew, makes sense in the near term. The SALIS partnership, under which 13 EU member states can charter strategic air transport from Ukraine, could be a useful model for cost sharing related to a Mistral lease. Over time, the EU could assume legal ownership of the ships from the French and man them with multinational crews, much the way NATO organizes, funds, and employs its multinational fleet of airborne warning and control system (AWACS) planes. And once the 28 EU member states see their Mistral, flying the EU flag, arrive on the scene of the next humanitarian crisis, it might just inspire them to make good on their repeated pledges to develop sorely needed civilian and military capabilities. The French government would need to work hard to convince the EU to take up the Mistral question. And its Finance Ministry could not realistically expect the EU to cover every euro of French penalties reportedly associated with canceling the existing contract. Still, Russian actions in Ukraine have led the EU to respond with sanctions that would have been unthinkable not long ago. And in the long run, Mistrals owned and operated by the EU will be a better advertisement for the French defense industry than placing them in Russian hands. Hence, if this French president were to propose an elegant but pragmatic EU solution to correct his predecessors grave error, he just might succeed in steering the Mistral to a safer home port. Full article: foreignpolicy/articles/2014/10/21/how_to_salvage_frances_mistral_shipwreck_france_warship_russia_sarkozy_hollande
Posted on: Wed, 22 Oct 2014 08:44:17 +0000
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