report.php, CAATnews Oct/Nov 2005 - Report
Frank Slijper sketches out arms industry lobbying in
Brussels.
The process towards a European Constitution has largely come to a halt
after it received a severe blow earlier this spring when a majority of
French and Dutch voters rejected it in national referenda. Their "no"
vote was a slap in the face for the governments that found out that
their vision of Europe was not the people's, however diverse their
reasons had been. Unfortunately this victory has a bitter taste for
those who reject the constitutional treaty because of its military
dimension.
As things look now, the process of further militarisation of the
European Union, and worse, the complete lack of democratic control of
it, moves on regardless of the constitutional debate. An important
reason for this is that military developments within the EU largely
tend to happen behind closed doors. That means that crucial policy
preparation meetings are mostly organised for "stakeholders" only -
meaning defence community bureaucrats and arms industry
representatives, with a few parliamentarians or "independent experts"
who are mostly invited for window dressing.
For a long time, plans for a European military policy moved forward
extremely slowly. It seemed that most people had accepted that the EU
was there for economic co-operation while NATO - though under American
dominance - was the relevant military umbrella for most of western
Europe. This was the case until the early 1990s. Step by step, a
"domestic" EU process has now gained speed. Over the last few years a
number of military-related developments at European level have made a
decisive impact on the course of action that is now followed by the
EU's executive body, the European Commission. Issues that were deemed
likely to remain at the discussion table forever appear to have
suddenly rooted: EU defence policy, common procurement, military
research spending and the restructuring of the arms industry.
The incorporation of military issues in the EU Constitution and the
creation of the European Defence Agency in particular are important
milestones that have passed unnoticed for many people. Not so for the
defence industry. Before a dozen generals and diplomats, three arms
industry representatives were asked to give their view on Europe's
defence policies - while no one from civil society organisations was
asked for theirs.
The arms industry's involvement in the preparation of the European
Constitution is in no way unique. Over the last few years the arms
industry has constantly and increasingly pressurised high-ranking
officials and parliamentarians, in Brussels and in national capitals,
to adopt their policy proposals. This has met with no small degree of
success. "The Group of Personalities", "LeaderSHIP 2015" and other
so-called task forces led by European Commission luminaries, have been
essential in lobbying for the interests of the arms industry, ranging
from increased spending on anti-terrorist technology, to the removal of
arms export barriers.
The recent introduction of "security research" spending is a clear
victory for the defence industry and opens new opportunities to extend
the range of the previously civil European research budget into the
military domain. Moreover, the advantage, both in access and strength,
that the industry has over civil society in lobbying its interests also
threatens the 1998 EU Code of Conduct on arms exports, which should
forbid arms sales to human rights abusers or conflict zones. Export
barriers tend to go down towards the lowest common denominator.
The close co-operation between the European Commission and the arms
industry is a classic example of backroom policy-making, and a
caricature of the way in which many people today look at European
decision-making processes in general. It is therefore high time for a
much more transparent European decision-making process - particularly
on military matters - to involve civil society, instead of the current
situation of overwhelming corporate power. Arms control organisations
certainly should play a larger role in that too. After the French and
Dutch rejection of the Constitution the opportunities are certainly
there.
Frank Slijper is the author of The emerging EU
Military-Industrial Complex . Arms industry lobbying in Brussels. This
Transnational Institute report was produced in cooperation with
Campagne tegen Wapenhandel (NL)
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