The Berlin Plus agreement is the short title of a comprehensive set of agreements reached on 16 December 2002 between NATO and the EU. [1] These agreements were based on the conclusions of the 1999 NATO summit in Washington, sometimes referred to as the CJTF mechanism[2] and allowed the EU to use some of NATO`s military assets in its own peacekeeping operations. The Berlin Plus agreement consists of seven main parties:[1][3] Since the Berlin Plus agreement in 2003, circumstances have changed dramatically. But the echoes of the old debates have recently wieder-showing that the friction which Berlin Plus responded yet exists. The US calls for increased EU defence spending are more ambitious, but their response to proposals for EU military effectiveness and autonomy reflects the suspicions of the past. The EU has taken the opportunity to become a serious player in defence and security, but its ambitions remain, as always, limited by the lack of significant EU capabilities, which will soon be strengthened by Brexit. This comprehensive framework for NATO-EU relations was concluded on 17 March 2003 by the exchange of letters between High Representative Javier Solana and then NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson. [3] At the 2018 Munich Security Conference, the ELN and the Federation of German Industry (BDI) held a roundtable on the state of Franco-German industrial cooperation and cooperation and its impact on the rest of Europe. In all this, the success and value of Berlin Plus seems to be silent and silent forgotten. The Berlin Plus agreements allow the EU, in times of crisis, to supplement its own military resources (largely EU Member States) using NATO`s collective means and capabilities. The rules fully protect the eu`s authority and political control in such a case. There is a recent practical example. The EU`s althea operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina is being carried out as part of Berlin Plus.
Its aim is to help the Bosnian authorities maintain a safe environment within the framework of the UN mandate. NATO provides communications, planning and command structure and helps generate the armed forces. NATO`s Deputy Commander-in-Chief, currently a 4-Star British General, is the commander of the operation. He is solely responsible for this function in the EU. The second, more problematic reason for the occupation of Berlin Plus is the dispute between Cyprus and Turkey. Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, one year after the Berlin Plus agreement. The potential operations of Berlin Plus are at risk of being taken hostage by Cypriot-Cypriot sensitivities. Turkey and Cyprus could veto the participation of others in a joint EU-NATO project within NATO and the EU.