EU Defense Agency

Tim Brown comments on the creation of Euroforce, which the US opposes: !While interesting, this announcement primarily represents a political victory for France, which that has been attempting to limit the role of NATO since De Gaulle. Note, not since Bush II or even Bush I, but rather much before either - although I predict it will trigger another spate of anti-Bush hues and cries. But it does not represent any serious increase in military forces, just a change in command structures and mission assignments. That is because the combined troops on active duty today in the various members of the EU already number more than 2.0 million, and their combined military expenditures are already more than US$200 billion. In terms of manpower on active duty, this will leave Europe third, not second, being exceeded by both the US and China and, were the Soviet Union still together so that Russia the CIS and the NIS could be added together, it would be fourth, exactly where Europe was before the fall of the Berlin Wall. As to budget, this new force will come from countries that have all along collectively been second only to the US, not least because of manpower costs since Chinese troops receive Chinese salaries and Russian troops receive Russian salaries, whereas European troops are paid better and receive better benefits than US troops".