A regional consultation with the European Union was on 20 January 2015 in Brussels, Belgium. During the EU regional consultations, lead author of the Global Study, Ms. Radhika Coomaraswamy, had the opportunity to meet with a wide range of European Union officials, civil society and academics, as well as 28 EU member states’ ambassadors and technical experts working on women, peace and security.
The EU consultations with member states included representatives from a number of important bodies, including: (i) the informal EU Task Force meeting on 1325, gathering the focal points in the ministries of EU MS; (ii) the Ambassadors of the Political and Security Committee (PSC); and (iii) the working group on UN affairs (CONUN). Member states reported on progress and gaps at national level, and also shared their views on how to move the women, peace and security agenda forward.
The consultation with the EU Taskforce on 1325 was chaired by Ms. Mercedes Garcia Perez (Spain), Head of Delegation, Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability at the European External Action Service (EEAS). EU officials, civil society and academics working on WPS, as well as EU MS representatives (from capitals) shared their views on the progress, challenges and key recommendations for the future of the WPS agenda.
At the consultation with the Political and Security Committee (PSC), Ms. Coomaraswamy presented the outline of the Global Study to EU ambassadors, a permanent representative of the European Commission, a representative of the EU Military Committee (EUMC), and a representative from the Secretariat of the Council of the EU.
At the CONUN (United Nations Working Party) informal meeting, organized by the EEAS, UN DPKO, and UN Women, Ms. Coomaraswamy shared information on the Global Study, the UN High-level Independent Panel on Peace Operations, and possible linkages between these two processes. Ms. Coomaraswamy is also a member of the Panel on Peace Operations.