Paris, 3 June: WEU Assembly President Klaus Bühler on Monday criticised the Council of Ministers for pushing the Assembly to the sidelines of the European defence debate.
 
“In practice, the Council has virtually disappeared as the Assembly’s partner in dialogue,” he said in his opening address to the first part of the Assembly’s 48th session. “We are all aware that our Assembly finds itself in a very difficult position during this phase of transition” with the transfer of WEU responsibilities to the EU, he declared. “We cannot expect to receive specific answers from our governments in the near future to the many questions that remain as regards the parliamentary dimension of European security and defence.”
 
The European Union (EU) is working on the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) with no legal basis since the Nice Treaty is not in force, and without any parliamentary scrutiny, Mr. Bühler said. “Despite increasing calls for our Assembly to be given responsibility for oversight of the ESDP during the transitional phase, we cannot assume that our governments will take any practical steps to that end.” He added that if Ireland were given a guarantee that its neutrality would be preserved under the ESDP, it would be another step towards an à la carte Europe.
 
If this phase continues for longer than expected, the question will arise of “how long the governments and parliaments can go on, giving taxpayers and citizens the impression that nothing needs to be done,” he declared. 
 
Looking ahead, he warned against making the same mistakes when discussions begin on the transfer of responsibilities for armaments cooperation to the EU and noted that there is a continuing role for the Western European Armaments Group (WEAG), which comprises 19 European countries.