Conference of Defence Committee Chairpersons of the national parliaments of the EU Member States, the European Parliament and the parliaments of the candidate states

The Conference of Defence Committee Chairpersons will take place in Berlin from 22 to 23 April 2007. As the Federal Republic of Germany assumes the Presidency of the European Union, 50 years after the creation of the European Economic Community, it faces the challenge of ensuring cooperation between the Member States in the field of security policy in order to preserve security and prosperity. In this context, it is essential to build on the range of conflict-management and peacekeeping instruments created by the European Union in recent years. We should strive to take further steps in the area of military cooperation, with the long-term prospect of joint European defence.

 

Against this background, the Conference's discussions will focus on the European Union's relationship with NATO, joint missions within the framework of the European Security and Defence Policy, and the status and prospects of the EU's civilian, police and civil-military capability development and of cooperation relating to the Civilian Headline Goal 2008.