36 Amendments of Michael GAHLER related to 2021/2183(INI)
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that the EU is facing new threats, including hybrid threats, increased militarisation around the world, recurrence of global power competition with an increasing military dimension and a still unstable neighbourhood, both in the East and in the South;
Amendment 90 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Welcomes the launch of the work on the Strategic Compass, which should be completed in March 2022; stresses that it is a beginning, not an end, and that it constitutes a major step towards a European Defence Union which would function as a starting point for implementing a common European defence in line with the provision laid out in Art. 42 (2) TEU;
Amendment 100 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Welcomes the announcement of a European Defence summit in early 2022 as well as the proclamation of 2022 as the year of European defence by the President of the European Council; expects that both initiatives will bring new thrust for further development of the European Defence Union;
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Emphasises the importance of supporting it with a 360-degree threat analysis; stresses that the Strategic Compass must be the EU’s ambitious response to this analysis, which must be subject to regular review aiming at developing a mechanism for a continuous threat assessment;
Amendment 119 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Stresses that the Strategic Compass must make it possible to strengthen the Union’s capacity to act as an increasingly credible strategic partner as well as to act autonomously if necessary; stresses that this exercise must be regularly updated, must set out an ambitious and operational course – with a timetable for the implementation of decisions and monitoring mechanisms – and must enable the Union to have a coherent defence policy, to develop a common understanding of the EU’s strategic challenges which provides the basis for a common strategic culture, a capacity to anticipate threats and provide a rapid and coordinated reaction and a capacity for autonomous resilience, to be able to mobilise resources on the basis of solidarity when a Member State is threatened and requests them, and ultimately to play a part in the protection of European citizens;
Amendment 140 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Recalls that the Union is currently deploying 11 civilian missions and six military missions and operations; recalls that only three of the military missions are executive missions; notes that these missions and operations are suffering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has limited their effectiveness; and therefore considers a review of the results and possibly an adaption of the mandate necessary;
Amendment 155 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
Amendment 185 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Recalls the strategic importance for European interests of the Mozambique Channel; welcomes the commitment of the Member States and the VP/HR to respond to the growing terrorist threat in the area; notes the forthcoming establishment of an EUTM; underlines the need for a comprehensive long-term coherent strategy for Mozambique which needs in addition to fight Islamist insurgencies to address governance deficiencies in order to achieve a sustainable solution to the conflict;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Welcomes the renewal of the Althea mission in 2020 and the refocusing of its mandate in support of the Bosnia- Herzegovina authorities in an effort to maintain a safe and secure environment; stresses that in light of secessionist tendencies by the Republika Srpska which could lead to violent conflict an adequate over-the-horizon reinforcement capability still needs to be maintained in order to allow for a rapid reaction in case of a deteriorating security situation;
Amendment 242 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Stresses the importance of providing military missions with more flexible and more robust mandates; callsunderlines the urgent need for closer linkages between existing European ad hoc operations and CSDP military missions or operations;
Amendment 246 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Is deeply concerned about the low force generation for operations and missions, and urgesstrongly calls upon the Member States to live up to their commitments and to address this matter as soon as possible; highlights in that regard the PESCO project “Crisis Response Operation Core” that aims at improving the force generation process which could also provide an institutional framework for the future, brigade-size rapid deployment force currently under discussion; regrets at the same time that up to now only six Member States participate in this PESCO project; calls on the Council and the Commission to make full use of the European Peace Facility and possibilities for funding from the Union’s budget provided by the treaties in order to facilitate force generation as well as military deployments; considers that third-country participation in CSDP operations and missions must always be in line with European interests and values; calls on the EU to provide staff in missions and operations with appropriate equipment and training to become more alert and more resilient under less permissive conditions;
Amendment 260 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Is deeply concerned about the increasing information manipulation, disinformation and hybrid threats affecting several theatres; calls for a structured response to these threats by CSDP missions; as a matter of urgency; underlines in that regard the need for joint efforts of EU, Member States and partner countries;
Amendment 295 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. SWelcomes and strongly supports the ambition of creating a ‘rapid brigade-size rapid deploymentry force’; recalls the existence of battlegroups as presented by the HR/VP and welcomes in principle the recent concept proposal for such a force by Germany, Finland, the need to make them credible by conducting regular field exercises; deplores the Member States’ lack of commitment to the battlegroups; criticises the fact that only one, led by Italy, is operational in 2021; laments the weakness of the planning for 2022 and 2023Netherlands, Portugal, and Slovenia in that regard; highlights that the EU Battlegroups have never been deployed in over 15 years of existence, despite the possibility of deploying them on several occasions, and are currently facing an increasing lack of Member States’ commitment as illustrated by the planning for 2022 and 2023; criticises the fact that only one, led by Italy, is operational in 2021; therefore states that the concept of a rapid deployment force would need to provide added value in comparison to the EU Battlegroups; calls accordingly on the Council and the Commission to thoroughly assess and develop options for setting-up a standing force which is permanently stationed and trains together, financed from both the European Peace Facility and the Union’s budget, by making full use of the current possibilities offered by the EU treaties; underlines that such a standing force would significantly contribute to EU’s ability to act on short notice and would facilitate progress of achieving EU’s level of ambition; stresses that such a European force will also contribute to a stronger EU-NATO partnership as it will improve EU’s military capabilities; reaffirms at the same time that NATO remains the main pillar for the EU’s territorial defence;
Amendment 317 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Welcomes the establishment of the European Peace Facility (EPF) in 2020 and calls for it to be made operational swiftly; stresses that the requisite equipment and training must be delivered in the relevant theatres of operation; points out that the EPF does not solely address provision of equipment to partners but also functions as a funding option for common costs of military operation within CSDP that should be used to the necessary extent; undertakes to ensure coherence and complementarity between CSDP missions and operations, the Union’s financial instruments (NDICI) and the EPF;
Amendment 337 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Points out that, given the geopolitical maritime tensions, the Union must protect its interests by guaranteeing freedom of navigation, the safety of maritime lines of communication and offshore infrastructure; underlines that in order to address these challenges EU needs to improve its capabilities and therefore welcomes the call for proposal for the development of a multirole and modular off-shore patrol vessel in the first call for proposals of the European Defence Fund;
Amendment 368 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26
Paragraph 26
26. Condemns the malicious acts committed against Member States; insists that the Union and the Member States react firmly and in coordination against any new malicious, illegal or destabilising activity; calls on the Union to work towards the creation of a legal instrument to respond to hybrid threats and to develop a comprehensive cyber capacity; calls for a revision of the cyber-defence policy framework in order to increase the prevention and deterrence capacity of the Union and its Member States; points out that effective cyber defence and deterrence also requires the expertise and ability to conduct offensive cyber operations;
Amendment 399 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 28
Paragraph 28
28. Calls on the Union to develop a space defence strategy, which is essential for its strategic autonomy in space ensuring undisrupted access to EU space assets at all times; encourages the Union to improve its situational awareness and geo- intelligence support; stresses the importance of the Union having its own launchers; insists that the Union should lead the way in strengthening the increasingly contested area of international space law;
Amendment 426 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 32
Paragraph 32
32. Notes that the pandemic has exposed our vulnerabilities and calls, therefore, for a reduction in Europe’s strategic dependencies; points out that our modern economies in general but also defence and security industries in particular strongly depend on semi- conductors ; welcomes in that regard the announcement of the President of the European Commission to address the shortage of semi-conductors by strengthening research, design and production in the EU through a European Chips Act; strongly underlines in that context the role of the European defence and security industry for the EU as it provides means to guarantee the safety of European citizens as well as the sustainable economic development of the Union; welcomes therefore the proposal of the President of the European Commission for a VAT exemption for defence products developed and produced within the EU;
Amendment 435 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33
Paragraph 33
33. Welcomes the progress made in connection with the European Defence Industrial Development Planrogramme (EDIDP) and the Preparatory Action on Defence Research (PADR) in strengthening the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) which is a crucial element for achieving strategic autonomy; calls on the Commission to draw useful lessons from thiese instruments for the European Defence Fund (EDF), with the aim of achieving operational results; welcomes the adoption of the EDF Regulation and the clear rules it sets out; recommends to the Commission at the same time to explore options to ease the bureaucratic burden in order to facilitate participation of companies, notably SMEs, in EDF projects; recommends setting up a joint mechanism for field testing of capabilities developed in the framework of EDIDP and EDF in order to facilitate integration of these capabilities in national armies; highlights the need for complementing the EDF with a joint procurement mechanism in order to make full use of the development efforts undertaken under the EDF as well as to ensure that an adequate level of economies of scale is achieved;
Amendment 442 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 a (new)
Paragraph 33 a (new)
33a. Welcomes that the areas for cooperation identified in the first full Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) completed last year fed, at least in certain areas, into the first call for proposals of the EDF; calls upon the Council and the Commission to further integrate CARD recommendations in future EDF work programmes and PESCO projects in order to improve coherence between these instruments; encourages the Member States to further integrate the CARD process and the resulting recommendations in national defence planning processes while ensuring compatibility and complementarity with NATO’s defence planning process at the same time;
Amendment 443 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 b (new)
Paragraph 33 b (new)
33b. takes note of the launch of the NATO innovation fund on emerging and disruptive technologies which was signed by 16 EU Member States and the UK; highlights that this fund addresses topics also covered within the EDF and therefore calls on all participating EU Member States to ensure complementarity to the EDF in order to avoid unnecessary duplications; stresses in that context the necessity for close cooperation between the EU and the UK in matters of security and defence;
Amendment 450 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34
Paragraph 34
34. Laments the reduction in the amount of the EDF under the MFF, which makes coherence between Union defence initiatives even more necessary; stresses, in this regard, the role of the European Defence Agency (EDA); calls for a budget increase for the EDF after 2027;
Amendment 462 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 35
Paragraph 35
35. Stresses that PESCO and the EDF must make it possible to enhance defence cooperation between Member States with the following objectives: European added value, improved operational capability, and interoperability, increased competitiveness of the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB), strengthening of strategic autonomy and reduced fragmentation of the European defence market;
Amendment 473 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 36
Paragraph 36
36. Recalls that third-country participation in PESCO projects must be decided on a case-by-case basis; welcomes the initial stages of military mobility and calls for subsequent stages to be implemented swiftly; approves and welcomes the participation of the United States, Norway and Canada in the military mobility project;
Amendment 484 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 37
Paragraph 37
37. Stresses that the EDF must promote the build-up of European industrial sectors and European champions, withproviding a multiannual programmingerspective in order to ensure the necessary predictability which is indispensable for complex long-term projects, and take advantage of civilian- defence synergies;
Amendment 491 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38 – introductory part
Paragraph 38 – introductory part
38. Welcomes the fact that the PESCO strategic review has led to a reduction in the number of projects and an increase in its political monitoring; expects accordingly that the next strategic review will also entail a thorough assessment which must lead to delivering PESCO project results; laments the fact that Parliament has been excluded from the monitoring of its implementation; considers that the Strategic Compass should aim to:
Amendment 498 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38 – indent 1
Paragraph 38 – indent 1
- guide policy/strategydefine clear priorities for the revision of the Capability Development Plan (CDP) and subsequent cycles of the main objectives (i.e. headline goals (HLG)),
Amendment 504 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38 – indent 3
Paragraph 38 – indent 3
- integrate EU military capability development processes, notably the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) and its results, into national defence planning processes,
Amendment 507 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 38 – indent 4
Paragraph 38 – indent 4
- focus on a small number of projects which are consistent with CSDP objectives and contribute to the development of the necessary capabilities needed for achieving EU’s level of ambition, are operational and provide European added value;
Amendment 518 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 39
Paragraph 39
39. Stresses that the digital sector is an area of opportunity but also of significant threat of malicious action against our security and democracies (by state and non-state actors, and erasing the lines laid down in the law of armed conflict), and that it transcends borders; calls for particular attention to be paid to the impact of emerging and disruptive technologies so as to ensure that they are applied and used throughout the Union, facilitate research and innovation and enhance the Union’s resilience, keeping in mind the need to control their usefacilitate their research and development in order to enhance the Union’s resilience and ability to act, ensuring that they are applied and used throughout the Union, and keeping in mind they should be used in accordance with international law and highest ethical standards to be developed within the Union;
Amendment 526 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 39 a (new)
Paragraph 39 a (new)
39a. Takes note of joint efforts of some Member States to develop essential future capabilities outside the EU framework, notably the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and the Main Ground Combat System (MGCS); highlights that these projects are important for strengthening European military capabilities in general; highlights that the results of the first Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) identified modernisation and acquisition of main battle tank systems as a focus area for cooperation; recommends to the respective Member States to explore additional cooperation and funding possibilities on the European level, most notably the EDF, in order to make full use of the European defence industries' innovative potential and achieve a higher level of economies of scale; considers in that context the TEMPEST project led by the United Kingdom in which also EU Member States participate as an unnecessary duplication to FCAS and therefore encourages the states participating in both projects to combine both projects in order to a achieve economies of scale as well as to ensure interoperability between the EU and the UK; stresses in that context the necessity for close cooperation between the EU and the UK in matters of security and defence;
Amendment 586 #
43. Calls for a stronger NATO supported by a stronger European Union, and wishes to see very tangible development in the EU-NATO partnership; calls, in this context, for NATO’s new strategic concept to be coherent with the EU’s Strategic Compasto make best use of the strategic reflection processes in both organisations to ensure consistency between NATO’s new strategic concept and the EU’s Strategic Compass; welcomes the announcement by Commission President von der Leyen of a new EU-NATO Joint Declaration to be presented before the end of the year; expects this declaration to entail provisions for the set-up of a regular consultation mechanism in order to deepen cooperation between both organisations;
Amendment 610 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45
Paragraph 45
45. Calls for closer relations with non- traditional partners in the Indo-Pacific region (India, Japan, Australia), and in specific policy sectors (cybersecurity, hybrid, maritime, etc.), and with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); highlights the security challenges in the Indo-Pacific region which is of significant interest for EU; notes with increasing concern China’s steadily growing armament efforts and military posture, in particular the reported test of a hypersonic missile and the increasing violations of Taiwan’s Air Defence Identification Zone; calls for all parties concerned to resolve their differences through peaceful means and to deescalate the tensions as well as to refrain from taking unilateral action to change the status quo; calls on all parties to adhere to the principles of international law, most notably the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; highlights the increasing relevance of disinformation originating in the Indo- Pacific which threaten to undermine EU activities in the region and therefore calls on the Council and to Commission to address this challenge in a similar way like disinformation originating from the eastern flank of EU;
Amendment 619 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45 a (new)
Paragraph 45 a (new)
45a. Notes with serious concern the recent display of force and escalating tensions in the regional hotspots such as South and East China Sea and Taiwan Strait; underlines that the peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific regions is of great importance for the EU and its Member States; expresses grave concern over China’s continued military manoeuvers in the Taiwan Strait, including those aimed at Taiwan or taking place in Taiwan’s Air Defence Identification Zone; calls on the PRC to stop such military sabre-rattling that pose serious threats to the peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and the Indo- Pacific region; reiterates that the relationship between China and Taiwan should be developed constructively through dialogues, without coercion or destabilizing tactics by either side; stresses the opposition to any unilateral action that may undermine the status quo of the Taiwan Strait and that any change to cross-strait relations must not be made against the will of Taiwan’s citizens;
Amendment 625 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45 b (new)
Paragraph 45 b (new)
45b. Recalls that China, together with other non-democratic countries, also remains a major threat to democracies in Europe through disinformation campaigns, in which they exploit the openness and freedom of expression to propose an authoritarian alternative to the democratic system; note that cooperation in the fight against disinformation is therefore in the interest of both the EU and Taiwan;
Amendment 627 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 45 c (new)
Paragraph 45 c (new)
45c. Encourages the EU and the Member States to deepen cooperation with Taiwan in confronting disinformation from malign third countries, including the sharing of best practices, joint approaches to fostering media freedom and journalism, deepening cooperation on cybersecurity and cyber-threats, raising citizens’ awareness and improving overall digital literacy among the population in order to strengthen the resilience of our democratic systems; support intensified cooperation between relevant European and Taiwanese government agencies, NGOs and think tanks in this field;