Puheet
Puolustusministeri Stefan Wallinin puhe Venäjän asevoimien yleisesikunta-akatemiassa
Puolustusministeri Stefan Wallin puhui 14.2.2012 Venäjän asevoimien yleisesikunta-akatemiassa
First of all I would like to thank you for the opportunity to speak to this distinguished audience on the security and defence policy in Finland, and in the European Union.
From the Finnish perspective our membership in the European Union and our participation in NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme set the framework for our security related cooperation in Europe.
Today I want look at the impact the economic crisis has on our defence forces. And secondly, I will look at European Union’s Common Security and Defence Policy.
So, let me now first look at the impact of the current economic crisis and how it affects our defence.
The economic crisis does not recognise borders between states. All sectors of the government are also hit equally, the defence forces included.
In 2012 Finland has to borrow seven billion euros, 281 billion RUBs, which is 1/7 of the total government budget. The interest of the public debt will be 2.36 billion euros, in other words roughly the size of our defence budget. We are facing a big task in balancing the national economy. Obviously the defence sector has to participate in this task, too.
In Finland, the need for a national defence forces reform was recognised already before the economic crisis. Thus, the need for reform lies deeper: over a number of years we have been well aware of the challenge which is created because of the fact that both the personnel and the real estate costs are rising. At the same time the increase of the cost of defence materiel rises much more than the average cost growth. But an additional challenge has been created because of the difficult economic situation, which compels us to carry out the reform both within a reduced financial frame and with a pace that is faster than originally planned for. All this calls for very difficult political decisions and smart prioritisation. We need to look into how we are organized and how we function. But the direction is clear: we need to safeguard the required defence capabilities for the next decade, this means the capabilities Finland needs for national defence, for assisting other authorities and for international crisis management.
As we well know, the current economic crisis has hit Europe particularly hard. In today’s interdependent world where the resources remain to be scarce, building and maintaining resources together seems to be the solution individual countries seek for.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The aim of the European Union and its member states is stated in the European Union’s Europe 2020 Strategy. This Strategy states, that:
“The year 2010 marks a new beginning: Europe shall strive at emerging stronger from the economic and financial crisis. Economic realities have changed faster than political realities and interdependence between states has grown. How Europe responds will determine our future. The crisis is a wake-up call, the moment where we recognise that the "business as usual" approach would consign us to a gradual decline. In the short term the goal is to emerge from the crisis and, at the same time, we shall have to reflect on solutions for the long term as well as new modes of action.”
What could these “new modes of action” in the defence sector be? I would say, that because of the difficult economic situation we are witnessing a beginning of a new era in European defence cooperation. Military capabilities need to be developed, maintained and used together.
We must look into the possibility of finding cost-effectiveness and reaching added value through multinational co-operation also in the field of military capability development.
In the European Union context the speech held by Germany’s Defence Minister in Ghent Ministerial meeting just over a year ago was seen as a starting point for a new mindset. It was followed by the joint initiative of Germany and Sweden. This initiative is known as Pooling and Sharing and its aim is to find new areas for multinational cooperation in military capability development and use of capabilities. In the EU, Finland has actively contributed to the work. Finland is the lead-nation on Maritime Surveillance project and participates in many other areas as well.
Similar work is underway in NATO under the title “Multinational Approaches” (MNA). MNA is one of the key components of NATO’s “Smart Defence”, which aims at enhancing security through cooperation.
The key events which hopefully push our cooperation further are the next EU Defence Ministers’ meeting in March and the NATO summit in Chicago in May. Multinational cooperation in military capability development will be high on the agenda in both meetings.
We must continue to work on two tracks: first, we must start implementing potential projects and secondly we must ensure that no obstacles arise for deeper cooperation.
Setting goals for the long term is more difficult. It is clear, however, that the “business as usual” approach would lead to gradual decline of our defence capabilities. Therefore we must pursue a new model of cooperation around the Pooling and Sharing and Smart Defence initiatives.
Next, I would like to say a few words about the European Union as a global actor. For Finland, membership in the European Union was a big strategic decision we made in the beginning of the 1990s. From the beginning of the 21st century the European Union has strengthened its role as a global actor. This is also in Finland’s interests. We can exert more influence in global politics as a member state of the European Union than we could have done on our own as a neutral or non-aligned country.
For a long time, the European Union was only a political and economical actor. Alongside the strengthening of the role of the European Union also the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) of the European Union has been strengthened.
In my view, the development of European Union’s Common Security and Defence Policy increases the global role of the European Union. The citizens of the member states, our strategic partners such as the United Nations and third countries expect the European Union to take on a more important role in world politics.
We have gained experience from CSDP operations only for the past ten years. But during these years we have also gained positive experience from the participation of non-EU countries in EU operations. For example, Russia played an important role in EUFOR TCHAD/RCA operation by providing helicopter capabilities.
Today the CSDP operations are quite effectively incorporated into EU’s overall action. Trade policy, development policy, traditional diplomacy and CSDP operations form together a comprehensive approach. In my view, this is the added value EU can bring. A good example of the comprehensive approach is the measures taken by the European Union in the Horn of Africa where also EU support to the United Nations can best be seen.
The recent strategy for the Horn of Africa guides the Union’s external action in the region. The goal of the strategy is to stabilise the situation particularly in Somalia and at the same time offer counter-piracy measures. At the same time the strategy looks at the problems in the area from a wider perspective. The aim is to ensure the compatibility of the Union’s measures regarding a wide range of issues from trade relations to terrorism and from climate issues to immigration.
The most visible contribution of the CSDP sector is the EU’s maritime operation, EUNAVFOR ATALANTA. Another CSDP action in the area is the EU training mission, EUTM SOMALIA. The training of Somali security forces has been carried out in cooperation between the UN, the African Union, Somalia’s Transitional Federal Government, Uganda and the United States.
Third CSDP element for the region has already been outlined and in the near future the European Union will engage in the development of maritime capabilities and state administration, including the judicial system, the police, border management and coastguard of the states in the region.
EU action in the Horn of Africa region highlights also the importance of our partners. For example, never before in modern times have so many navies worked together to tackle the problem of piracy. From the EU side we welcome Russia’s close cooperation with the operation EUNAVFOR. Amongst other things, Russia is doing important work in escorting humanitarian assistance to Somalia.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Jean-Claude Trichet said in an interview, as he retired from his position as the president of the European Central Bank last fall that ‘we are presently experiencing history in the making in Europe. All that I know makes me think that no leader, no individual and no country will take the responsibility of going backwards. That’s the reason why I’m confident in the future of Europe.’ And he continued: ‘One of the main lessons of the crisis is precisely that Europe needs more unity. In my opinion, this is not necessarily perceived spontaneously or communicated appropriately to the public, but I think these are the truths that are there.’
As a Defence Minister I could not agree more when looking at the current situation from the perspective of the development of the defence forces during these difficult economic times. For many countries, the current economic situation has reduced the resources we have available for defence. This means that we must find savings and cost-effectiveness through increased multinational cooperation.