NATO turns over former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ¹ mission to the EU

French troops assigned to the new EU mission in FYROM unfurl the EU flag in front of journalists and soldiers.

SHAPE HEADQUARTERS, CASTEAU – On 31 March, NATO relinquished its mission, Operation Allied Harmony, in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the European Union (EU). The decision by the North Atlantic Council (NAC) closes a chapter on NATO military and political support to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and marks a significant milestone in that young nation’s history.

The objective of the NATO mission has been to provide a secure environment as well as operational, advisory and other supportive activities to assist the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ’s leaders and authorities with the processes of modernization and democratization.

Despite ‘changing the guard’ to the EU, NATO has declared that it will remain fully committed to helping the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia integrate into Euro-Atlantic structures and will continue to work for peace and stability in the Balkans.

NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson addresses the troops and dignitaries gathered at the ceremony marking the transfer of authority from NATO to the EU. Also on the podium are (L - R) Mr Solana, EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy, Mr Volis, representing the Greek Foreign Ministry, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia President, Mr. Trajkovski.

Through Allied Harmony and previous sister operations, dubbed Essential Harvest and Amber Fox, the people of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia , accompanied by NATO officials and military personnel from many Allied Command Europe nations, have progressed from the brink of civil war in August 2001 along the challenging road to peace and stability.

Allied Harmony was not NATO’s first mission in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia . The military support in fact commenced on 26 August 2001 with operation Essential Harvest. This mission was initiated to fulfil NATO’s promise to assist the Macedonian people by collecting and destroying arms and ammunition on a voluntary basis from insurgent ethnic-Albanian rebels.

The mission involved the rapid deployment of Allied troops on what was dubbed Task Force Harvest, to work closely with the Macedonian Army’s border forces along the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia -Kosovo border. Their task was to ensure that the frontier with Kosovo remained secure and free from any hostile activity.

On 14 August, the forward party of British, Czech and French soldiers arrived in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia at the request and with the full support of the Macedonian government demonstrating NATO’s will and determination to prevent civil war.

By 14 September, the successful disarmament of the armed insurgents was achieve and in so doing, established the conditions for the peaceful resolution of the crisis which could well have engulfed this country.

NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson on 25 September 2001 saluted the troops, “I would like to pay a warm tribute to the 4,600 NATO troops in Task Force Harvest who came here at very short notice to do a remarkable mission and who have done it with huge efficiency, commitment and dedication. “

Essential Harvest succeeded in collecting 3875 weapons over 30 days. Included were four tanks and Armoured Personnel Carriers, 17 air defence weapons systems, 161 anti-tank systems, 483 machine guns, 3210 assault rifles and nearly 400 thousand mines, explosives and ammunition.

The armed insurgency was a manifestation of discontent among the ethnic Albanian community and required more than disarmament. The Ohrid Agreement was negotiated giving more rights to the Albanian population in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia .

NATO continued its support and commitment to the local authorities and citizens through succeeding mission named “Amber Fox” which was launched on 26 September 2001. The mandate of "Amber Fox" was to provide additional security to international monitors, while authorities of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia had primarily responsibility for their security.

Further democratisation and improvement in human rights through the process of dialogue and reconciliation progressed significantly. As a result of the greatly improved security in the country, authorities of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and NATO decided to bring the mission to an end on 15 December 2002.

The current mission, Allied Harmony, started the next day on 16 December 2002. The purpose has been to advise and assist the host nation authorities with the normalization process and contribute to the overall international community aim to bring confidence and stability to the country and region.

The handover of authority from NATO to EU officials on 31 March 2003 indicates unprecedented coordination and cooperation between the two vital organizations. One of SHAPE’s most senior leaders, German Navy Admiral Rainer Feist, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (DSACEUR), has been appointed as Operational Commander thereby filling a pivotal role between the EU and NATO.

“It is essential that we recognize the need to maintain the unity of command and mutual support to ensure the necessary coherence between EU and NATO-led operations in the whole Balkans Joint Operations Area,” said Admiral Feist. “NATO’s proven command and control structures and capabilities at the strategic, operational and tactical levels, as well as our assets, will be shared with the EU as they take over operations.”

NATO and the EU must be able to rely on each other's crisis management procedures in the event of an emergency. Coordination, harmonization and mutual support between EU activities in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the ongoing NATO operations in the JOA, particularly those across the border in Kosovo (KFOR), will be essential to all future planning.

“The development of the NATO-EU strategic partnership and the agreements for EU access to NATO assets and capabilities for EU-led operations (the so-called "Berlin Plus" arrangements), have been crucial in enabling the EU to take over NATO's mission in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,” added Admiral Feist.

Additional Information

• EU Website: EU Military Operation in former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (2/04/2003)
  

1. Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.