New agenda for the European peace keeping mission in Chad and CAR
Feb 13th, 2008 by Brice Blondel UNDP CAR
Tuesday, February 12th, the deployment of EUFOR troops resumed after an 11 day stoppage caused by the rebellion break through in Chad.
The instable polititcal situation in Chad has generated further delay in the deployment of the EUFOR Chad/CAR, which will support the UN mission MINURCAT already operating in Chad and Sudan. But according to Javier Solana, High Representative for the European Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy, rebellion in Chad is not compromising the peace keeping mission:
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“We took the decision to launch an operation in Chad because we knew very well that Chad is an important country for the stability of the region. Today, as you know the situation is not yet clear, as far as the situation on the ground is concerned. As far as the political outcome is concerned, we continue to maintain the operation in readiness.
We have halted deployment in the last few days in order to see how the sitation evolves on the ground and to have more clarity concerning the political developments. But our intention is to maintain the operation.
These events prove the need for an operation of this nature, not only for Chad but also for relations between Chad and Sudan. The operation is aimed at protecting people, who are displaced, in camps, or in other places in Chad. This is more important than ever.”
The Agenda
On January 28th, precisely four months after receiving its UN mandate, the European Council finally came to an agreement on the funding of a 3,700 strong multinational force, including 2,100 French soldiers.
The Headquarters of the mission are already on site in Abeche, working on the imminent deployment of the initial contingent composed of Australian, French, Belgian, Irish, and Swedish soldiers. By early March, these troops should have set the conditions for the deployment of the whole contingent representing 14 member states of the EU.
The deployment of troops was suspended during the recent fightings in Chad but should resume in the coming days, reaching full capacity before the end of May and the beginning of the rainy season.
Mission outline
Following the validation of the operational plan by the Council of the European Union, Lieutenant General Patrick Nash, Operation Commander of the EUFOR Chad/CAR reiterated the military goals attributed to the mission:
- Protect civilians in danger, particularly refugees and displaced persons
- Facilitate the delivery of humanitarian personnel by helping to improve security in the area of operations
- Contribute to protecting United Nations personnel, facilities, installations and equipment and to ensuring the security and freedom of movement of its staff and United Nations and associated personnel
The relation between the Eufor and the Minurcat
Through its resolution 1778 (25 September 2007), the Security Council of the United Nations approved the establishment of a multidimensional mission including both a United Nation contingent and a European force.
In CAR, the UN mission MINURCAT is already working along with the Government to improve the protection of civilians and refugees from the attacks of belligerent parties.
The European force EUFOR should extend the intervention capacity of the peace keeping mission by securing a wider zone along the borders of Chad, CAR and Sudan. By doing so, the EUFOR should address the concern of the CAR Government whose limited forces do not currently allow for a sufficient protection of the refugees.
Analysis
More than ever, the major issue for the European force will be to convince all belligerent parties of its neutrality.
Although France has recently tried to avoid providing direct military support to the Chadian government, Idriss Deby and EUFOR (strongly supported by France) still share a major strategic goal: the protection of Chad’s eastern border with Sudan. For Idris Deby, this would limit the ability of the Chadian rebellion to receive military stocks and support from Sudan. For the EUFOR it would create a safety zone to receive the displaced population from Darfur, Chad and CAR.
However, Sudan has been reluctant to accept any international military intervention and a successfull military coup of the Chadian rebellion would compromise the presence of EUFOR in the region.
The success of the EUFOR mission relies on a fragile geopolitical equilibrium that has just been dangerously shaken.
Official information:
Key documents:
- Secretary-General’s detailed outline for the MINURCAT mission (PDF; 126 KB)
- Note from EU to Security Council about EU commitment (PDF; 30 KB)
- Security Council resolution 1778 (PDF; 57 KB)
- Council of the EU joint action 2007/677/CFSP(PDF; 51 KB)
HDPT briefing material on CAR:
