Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 67: To ask the Minister for Defence his views on statements by Finland's Ministry of Defence highlighting the close link between EU battle groups and NATO. [7420/06]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Most member states of the EU are also members of NATO and only have one set of forces at their disposal, which they can make available both to the EU and EU battle groups and to NATO and the NATO response force. It is reasonable and appropriate for states that are members of both organisations to ensure similar standards, procedures, training regimes, command and control arrangements etc. apply uniformly across both organisations, as it would be extremely difficult to operate two different standards regimes within a single set of forces. In this regard, as is stated on the Finnish Department of Defence website, there is a level of complementarity between the arrangements for the NRF and the EU battle groups. Within the EU battle group concept, it is provided that the battle group on stand-by for a particular semester will be available solely for deployment on EU operations and will not be committed or available for other duties.