EU Parliament Reportedly Heads Back Creation of Joint Reaction Force of 5,000 Troops

MADRID (Sputnik) - The heads of parliaments of member states of the European Union have backed the creation of a joint rapid reaction force of 5,000 troops, Spanish media reported, citing a summit conclusions document.
Sputnik
The report said on Tuesday, following a conference of the heads of EU parliaments held in Spain's Balearic Islands, that they believe that the EU's initiative to create "its own military instrument" to enable the union to "act in defense of the security of its citizens, its interests and democratic values" is particularly relevant.
Citing the document, the report said that the heads of EU parliaments said it is necessary to guarantee sufficient investments in the military capabilities of the union's member states for "collective deterrence and defense." The initiative would lead to an increase in the industrial and technological autonomy of the union, its economic development and the growth in employment, the report said.
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Borrell said in November 2023 that the EU was making "good progress" on developing its rapid reaction force of 5,000 military personnel, aiming to make it fully operational in 2025.
The European Union's Rapid Deployment Capacity (RDC) was established in April 2023 to respond to geopolitical crises worldwide, to boost the EU’s ability "to effectively prevent or react to crises and protect" European citizens and values across the world.