EU to hold "tabletop" exercises to test mutual assistance clause in event of attack – media
The European Union intends to model how it would respond in the event of an attack on one of the bloc’s member states. To this end, "tabletop" exercises will be held next month.
Politico writes this, citing European officials, Censor.NET reports.
More about the exercises
According to a senior EU official, in the framework of the first operation of this kind, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas is due to oversee so-called "tabletop" exercises next month to determine how the bloc’s mutual assistance clause would work in practice (Article 42.7 of the Treaty on European Union).
The purpose of these exercises is to test the European Union’s political, rather than military, response.
"After that, we will conduct exercises with the [defence] ministers to see how it works in practice," an anonymous official told Politico.
What article is this?
- Article 42.7 provides that if an EU member faces "armed aggression", the other members are obliged to provide it with "aid and assistance by all the means in their power".
- The article does not specify whether such assistance includes a military response and contains wording relating to neutral states such as Austria and Ireland.
Most EU members are also part of NATO and therefore fall under Article 5 on mutual defence. However, tensions within the Alliance and threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to seize Greenland have shaken allies’ faith in Article 5 and prompted renewed interest in the EU’s security mechanisms.
After Cyprus was targeted in March by drones launched from Lebanon, it was that country that expressed interest in examining how Article 42.7 would work in practice, the senior official noted. An EU leaders’ summit will take place in Cyprus next week.
