§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether any British troops committed to action under the proposed European Defence Force would have available the support and protection of those electronic intelligence and surveillance capabilities of the United States which would be made available to NATO under similar conditions. [HL4766]
§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean)At the Washington Summit in April 1999, NATO Heads of State and Governments welcomed the impetus being given to the strengthening of a common European policy in security and defence. They announced that they stood ready to develop arrangements to provide the EU with ready access to the collective assets and capabilities of the Alliance for operations in which the Alliance as a whole is not militarily engaged. Work is in hand to develop these arrangements.