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On what basis is matériel used in EU military operations?

For example, Operation Sophia is the EU military mission to interdict people smuggling routes in the Mediterranean.

On what basis are the naval assets used? The Berlin Plus Agreement?

Could an EU member state choose not to participate or supply matériel in the operation?

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  • Yes, obviously. Countries commit men and equipment on a case-by-case basis, no operation of this kind happens without unanimous consent. That's equally true for UN missions and NATO-centered operations and already detailed in Wikipedia's article on the Berlin Plus Agreement.
    – Relaxed
    Feb 8, 2019 at 11:52
  • Thank you. I can see the relevant sentence now in the Wikipedia article! UN missions dont require unanimity - I thought they needed nine of fifteen votes and no vetoes by permanent members - am I wrong? NATO does as far as I know. Is the materiel used by the EU under the auspices of NATO or the member states themselves?
    – 52d6c6af
    Feb 8, 2019 at 12:38
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    I already asked you under your question regarding the UN what kind of body you were considering when you're asking about “unanimity” or “majority”. The UN has absolutely no power to summon troops, even if an operation has been approved by the Security Council (which it typically wouldn't be if a coalition hadn't been already identified), each country is still completely free to commit troops or not. Again, neither the UN nor NATO nor the EU has any standing armies that could be committed without the consent of all those involved.
    – Relaxed
    Feb 8, 2019 at 13:02
  • The question of consent is a little nuanced. For example, the a state might be a member of NATO and therefore party to the Berlin Plus agreement which indicates that permission should be granted to the EU to use military assets. But the sovereign government might not want to grant use of assets at the time of the action (for whatever reason.) Do you see my question?
    – 52d6c6af
    Feb 8, 2019 at 13:27
  • No, I do not see your question but in any case, that's not what you asked. You cannot go around with a question in mind, ask another, broad and seemingly naive, question and then turn the answer into a discussion thread.
    – Relaxed
    Feb 8, 2019 at 15:47

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Yes, obviously. Countries commit men and equipment on a case-by-case basis, no operation of this kind happens without unanimous consent. That's equally true for UN missions and NATO-centered operations and already detailed in Wikipedia's article on the Berlin Plus Agreement.

The UN has absolutely no power to summon troops, even if an operation has been approved by the Security Council (which it typically wouldn't be if a coalition hadn't been already identified), each country is still completely free to commit troops or not. Again, neither the UN nor NATO nor the EU has any standing armies that could be committed without the consent of all those involved.

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