The European Union announced that its Rapid Deployment Capacity had become operational, marking a major step in the EU’s ability to respond quickly to crises beyond its borders.
The EU RDC is designed as a flexible and scalable military instrument of up to 5,000 troops. It can be used for stabilisation, rescue and evacuation, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, peace enforcement, conflict prevention and capacity building. Any deployment requires a unanimous decision by EU Member States.
The capacity is built around modified EU Battlegroups on standby, additional forces and capabilities contributed by Member States, and land, air, maritime, space and cyber components. The Military Planning and Conduct Capability is the preferred command-and-control structure.
The EEAS said live exercises in Spain, Germany and Hungary had helped test readiness and interoperability. Training will continue to maintain operational readiness and prepare the capacity for more demanding scenarios.