Eurocorps

The Eurocorps, located in the French city of Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin), is a multinational army corps headquarters. Created by France and Germany in 1992, today it is made up of staff from six Framework Nations and five Associate Nations. The framework nations put the Eurocorps at the service of the European Union (EU) and NATO, which certified it in 2002 as one of its nine High Readiness Land Headquarters.

The precedents of the Eurocorps date back to 1989, when the German Chancellor, Helmut Kohl, and the President of the French Republic, François Mitterrand, began military cooperation establishing the Franco-German Defense and Security Council and creating a joint brigade, which became operational in 1991.

Later, in 1992, at the summit in "La Rochelle", both countries signed the report that led to the creation of the Eurocorps. In that same year the first German and French officers joined the unit. In 1993 Belgium joined and, a year later, Spain joined. In 1995 it was officially declared operational and the following year Luxembourg joined. In 2022 Poland became the sixth framework nation. The Eurocorps currently has six framework states: Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Luxembourg and Poland, and five countries as associates such as Greece, Turkey, Italy, Austria and Romania. There have also been, during different periods, military personnel from Canada (2003-2007), the United Kingdom (1999-2002), the Netherlands (1999-2002) and Finland (2002-2005).

Eurocorps is currently governed by the "Treaty Relating to Eurocorps and the Statute of its Headquarters" also known as the "Treaty of Strasbourg" an agreement signed in Brussels on November 22, 2004 by the defense ministers of the five member countries at the time: Germany, France, Belgium, Spain and Luxembourg and ratified by their national parliaments. It finally came into force in 2009.

The treaty, as detailed in article 1, is intended to "define the fundamental principles relating to the missions, the organization and operation of the Eurocorps".

In article 2, it defines the European military group as "the multinational army corps made up of the General Headquarters and the units in respect of which the Contracting Parties have transferred command to the General to the command of the Eurocorps".

Regarding Eurocorps missions, article 3 of the Strasbourg Treaty states that they may be entrusted to it in the context of the United Nations, the Western European Union (WEU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Including evacuation missions, those of a humanitarian nature, maintenance of La Paz or crisis management.

Member States

Six countries make up the Eurocorps as framework nations. The treaty allows other nations to become member states of the Eurocorps, if they have the approval of the members. Eurocorps has personnel drawn from both framework nations and partner nations.

Framework nations

• France (1992)

• Germany (1992)

• Belgium (1993)

• - Spain (1994)
• - Luxembourg (1996)
• – Poland (2022)

Partner nations

• – Austria (2002-11); again since 2021
• Greece (2002)
• - Italy (2009)
• – Romania (2016)
• - Turkey (2002)

History

The Eurocorps has its origins in the Franco-German Brigade, created in 1989. As a continuation of this initiative on October 14, 1991, France and Germany announced their intention to further strengthen European defense integration by establishing of an army corps headquarters.

During the Franco-German summit in La Rochelle, held on May 22, 1992, French President François Mitterrand and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl decided to launch the project and create said headquarters, the Eurocorps. Although initially it had a Franco-German character, shortly after the Eurocorps would be opened to all member states of the Western European Union (WEU).

On June 19, the European Union issues the so-called Petersberg Declaration, which defines the missions that can be entrusted to the WEU and that the new Eurocorps will also assume: ensure the common defense of the countries allies, carry out operations to maintain or restore peace for the benefit of the United Nations Organization or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, as well as other humanitarian missions.

On July 1, 1992, a provisional General Staff was installed in the French city of Strasbourg, one of the capitals of the European Union, to create the bases of the Eurocorps Headquarters.

On January 21, 1993, an agreement is signed with SACEUR that places the Eurocorps at the disposal of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. On October 1 of that same year, the Eurocorps Headquarters was definitively installed in Strasbourg, on the basis of the General Staff activated a few months earlier.

During those first years, several countries joined the Franco-German initiative. On October 12, 1993, Belgium joined the Eurocorps with a mechanized division; on July 1, 1994, the Spanish Council of Ministers authorized the participation of Spain with a mechanized division; Luxembourg joins the project on May 7, 1996.

In November 1995, the Eurocorps reached the necessary conditions to be officially declared operational.

At that time the Eurocorps had the following units permanently affiliated: the French 1st Armored Division, the German 10th Armored Division, the Belgian 1st Mechanized Division, which included a Luxembourg reconnaissance company, the “Brunete” Mechanized Division and the Franco-German Brigade, which added a total of 50,000 troops, 645 battle tanks, 1,400 armored vehicles and 360 artillery pieces.

This situation continued until 1999, when the Heads of State and Government of the five Eurocorps framework nations declared at the European Council held in Cologne (June 3 and 4) their agreement to «adapt the European Army Corps, and in particular its Headquarters, to the new strategic scenario to convert it into a European Rapid Reaction Corps, responding to the desire of the European Union to have forces adapted to crisis management operations».

This declaration of an eminently political nature was later developed in the Luxembourg Report of November 22, 1999, which established the general guidelines for the aforementioned transformation, respecting once again the double transatlantic and European orientation, by keeping the Eurocorps at NATO and EU readiness for crisis management operations.

On February 25, 2003, Austria and Finland signed a treaty allowing them to send personnel to the corps headquarters. Finland remained an Associate Nation until 2005, and Austria until 2011. Romania became an Associate Nation in April 2016, while Austria rejoined an Associate Nation in 2021. In addition, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have sent officials liaison to the headquarters of the body.

Poland was accepted as a member in 2010. It was expected to be effective from January 1, 2016, but was delayed until January 2017. However, a change of government with the 2015 Polish elections caused it to be withdrawn the application for membership as a framework nation to remain an associate member. In November 2021, Poland again expressed interest in becoming a full member. This interest materialized in 2022 when it finally became the sixth Eurocorps framework nation.

Eurocorps has adopted a modular philosophy and the affiliation of large units is no longer permanent. Currently the affiliation is carried out based on the real missions in which the Eurocorps must intervene and its only permanent units are the General Headquarters and a multinational support brigade.

Considering its contribution to the Alliance, Eurocorps is today one of nine NATO High Readiness Land Headquarters (HRF(L) HQ), having been certified as such in in 2003 and is fully integrated into the NATO Response Force (NRF) rotation system.

On the other hand, in its European aspect, the Eurocorps Headquarters is also offered to the EU for crisis management operations as Command of the Land Component or Headquarters of the Combat Groups of the European Union (EUBG).

Badge

The chest insignia was created by an officer in the employment office of the French Armed Forces, Lieutenant Colonel Pellabeuf. This insignia, approved on June 18, 1993 with the number G4000, was produced by the Delsart company and, by order of the Chief of Staff, General Clerc, was used for the first time on November 5, 1993, during the ceremony official creation of the body and in the presence of the Defense Ministers of the three participating countries at that time (Germany, France and Belgium).

Its description is "a badge in the shape of a shield that symbolizes the defense of the European continent".

Europe is represented by two symbols:

• The blue background and the golden stars of the European flag,
• A symbolic silhouette of the continent that allows to hide some of the stars.

On the other hand, a sword reminds us that the Eurocorps is a great military unit.

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  Chest badge.
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  Arm badge.
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  Bone badge.

Organization

A Eurobody military parade in Strasbourg, 2013.

Political-Military Directorate

Eurocorps belongs to the six framework nations and is not subordinated to any other defense organization of a supranational nature.

The highest decision-making body of the Eurocorps is the Joint Committee, which is made up of the Chiefs of Defense Staff and the Political Directors of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the six framework nations. Its mission is to ensure the political-military direction and the coordination and conditions of employment of the forces. At the same time, it is the collegiate body in charge of maintaining relations with the Western defensive alliances (EU and NATO) and with other international organizations. The Common Committee, therefore, is in charge of studying possible requests for support from transnational organizations (UN, EU, NATO, OSCE...) or from any of the framework nations.

Structure

The Eurocorps Headquarters is made up of a Command Group, a General Staff, a Multinational Support Brigade and the NSD.

• Command Group

Located in the “Aubert de Vincelles” barracks. It is made up of the Eurocorps lieutenant general, a deputy chief general, a chief of staff and the heads of the various divisions of the staff.

• Staff

Located in the “Aubert de Vincelles” barracks. Of a multinational nature, it is designed to be used with great flexibility and to be completed in a progressive and weighted manner with personnel from the different participating countries. The working language is English.

• Multinational Support Brigade

Located in the “Aubert de Vincelles” and “Lizé” barracks. It is made up of soldiers from the different member countries. Its task is to provide the necessary support for the deployment and maintenance of the Headquarters (communications, protection, food, transportation, accommodation...).

• NSD

National support detachment. It is in charge of the national affairs of the different framework states and is located in the "Lizé" barracks.

Military operations

The decision to use the Eurocorps is the responsibility of the governments of the framework nations. Since its foundation, the unit has participated in multiple operations and in periods of immediate alert, both for the benefit of the European Union and NATO:

• From May 1998 to January 2000: deployment to the Balkans, where the Eurobody participates in four successive troops of the NATO Stabilization Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR).

• From April to October 2000: deployment in Serbia, where the Eurobody assumes command of a rotation of the NATO Force in Kosovo (KFOR).
• From August 2004 to February 2005: deployment in Afghanistan, leading the NATO International Assistance and Security Force (ISAF).
• From July 2006 to January 2007: the Eurobody leads the ground component of the NATO Reaction Force (NRF 7), staying on a permanent alert for a possible deployment for a period of six months.
• From July 2010 to January 2011: the Eurobody assumes a new six-month alert period as headquarters for the NATO NRF 15 Earth component.
• From January 2012 to January 2013: new deployment in Afghanistan, with the participation of Eurobody staff at various ISAF headquarters.
• From July to December 2015: deployment in Mali; the Eurobody assumes command of a contingent of the European Union Training Mission (EUTM Mali).
• From July 2016 to July 2017: 12-month alert period as headquarters of the Earth component of two successive rotations of the European Union Combat Group (EUBG).
• From July 2016 to January 2018: deployment in the Central African Republic, where the Eurobody leads three successive contingents of the European Union Training Mission in that country (EUTM RCA).
• In January 2020, the Eurobody takes a one-year NATO alert as command of the ground component of the NATO Response Force 20.
• First and second half of 2021 European Union Training Mission in Mali (EUTM MALI).
• Second semester of 2021 and first semester of 2022 European Union Training Mission in Central African Republic (EUTM RCA) aims to advise and support the government in the formation of the new armed forces of the country, which are playing an important role in the stabilization of the country.

Eurocorps Chief Generals

Key HQ positions, including your commanding general, are assigned in turn among nations. Since its foundation, the Heads of the Eurocorps have been the following:

• Lieutenant General Helmut Willmann: 1993-1996 (Germany)
• Lieutenant General Pierre Forterre: 1996–1997 (France)
• Léo Van Den Bosch: 1997–1999 (Belgium)
• Lieutenant General Juan Ortuño Such: 1999–2001 (Spain)
• Lieutenant General Holger Kammerhoff: 2001–2003 (Germany)
• Lt. General Jean-Louis Py: 2003-2005 (France)
• Lieutenant General Charles-Henri Delcour: 2005–2007 (Belgium)
• Lieutenant General Pedro Pitarch Bartolomé: 2007–2009 (Spain)
• Lieutenant General Hans-Lothar Domröse: 2009-2011 (Germany)
• Lieutenant General Olivier de Bavinchove: 2011–2013 (France)
• Lieutenant General Guy Buchsenschmidt: 2013–2015 (Belgium)
• Lt. General Alfredo Ramírez Fernández: 2015–2017 (Spain)
• Lieutenant General Jürgen Weigt: 2017-2019 (Germany)
• Lieutenant General Laurent Kolodziej: 2019-2021 (France)
• Lieutenant Général Peter Devogelaere: 2021- (Belgium)