DEFENCE: MINISTERS TO EVALUATE MILITARY OPERATION IN BOSNIA.

EU Foreign Ministers had already referred in June to the "successful execution" of the EU's military operation, saying that an EU presence would be required beyond the end of 2005.

Officials explain that the review of the mandate will for example involve looking at the relationship between the EU's military operation and its police mission in BiH (EUPM), in view of what they said was "change for the better" in the country. They added that, if necessary, an updated mandate might be adopted by Defence Ministers when they meet in November in Brussels.

The EUFOR ALTHEA military operation was launched in December 2004, following on from NATO's SFOR (Stabilisation Force) operation and subsequent to the January 2003 launch of the EUPM. Participants include 22 EU member states (all except Cyprus, Denmark and Malta) and eleven third countries: Albania, Argentina, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Morocco, New Zealand, Norway, Romania, Switzerland and Turkey.

The operation is supposed first and foremost to maintain a safe and secure environment in BiH and to ensure continued compliance with the internationally-brokered 1995 Dayton/Paris peace agreement that ended the Bosnian war. Headquartered in Sarajevo, the mission also forms part of a broader EU policy that sees BiH as a future EU member if it carries out the necessary reforms.

The EUFOR operation is carried out under the so-called "Berlin plus" arrangements giving the EU access to NATO assets and capabilities. The 'common costs' of the operation in 2005 were estimated at some euro 70 million, paid through contributions by member states based on GDP.

Procurement.

As well as being treated to a demonstration of expeditionary military capabilities at the RAF Lyneham air force base, Defence Ministers will also meet as the European Defence Agency (EDA) Steering Board, chaired by Mr Solana.

They are expected to broach the idea of issuing a code of conduct on defence procurement that would be designed to inject more Europe-wide competition into lucrative but nationally protected defence and equipment markets. As it stands, EU member states can use Article 296 of the EU Treaty to exempt purchases of defence equipment from the normal Internal Market rules requiring cross-border competition.

The code would look to reduce national protection of defence industries on a voluntary basis. Ministers could take a formal decision on the matter in November. EU officials said the code could then become 'live' from the middle...