UK under fire over EU defence

France has hit out at the UK for blocking moves to increase funding for an EU agency on defence policy.

At a gathering of defence ministers on Monday, London opted not to join a new EU defence research programme to develop battlefield protection for European troops.

Because of the disagreement, ministers were unable to endorse a three-year spending plan for the European defence agency.

Instead, ministers only gave the green light to the 2007 budget.

“Haggling over €1m for an agency which will be decisive in providing us with the resources and research means to prepare the future EU defence - that seemed to me a bit of a joke,” French defence minister Michele Alliot-Marie told reporters.

“I indicated that I didn't see the coherence between [prime minister Tony] Blair’s statements recalling his commitment to EU defence policy and this very static position,” she said.

The UK also decided to stay out of the European defence agency’s first major research project.

The UK argues that it already spends heavily in the area.

Eighteen EU countries plus Norway contributed €54m to the research fund to pool national defence budgets.

The UK and France are the EU’s biggest military powers and they have frequently differed over the approach to Europe’s defence.

London has tended to place greater emphasis on Nato alliances while France has focused on European forces.

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