Speaking at a Brussels forum, Juncker reiterated his belief that the 28-member bloc should join military forces to create a defense system capable to warning off any potential threats to Europe.
"A bunch of chickens looks like a combat formation compared to the foreign and security policy of the European Union."
"I always call for a European army as a long-term project. It is not something you can build from scratch tomorrow morning," he said.
In the long term we need to have a European #army. It is not something we will have at 9 o'clock tomorrow morning. @JunckerEU #EuropaForum
— Monica Tiberi (@MonicaTiberi) May 7, 2015
The fresh call to create a joint European army follows comments Juncker made in March, when he said the EU needed to combat the perceived Russian threat and "convey to Russia that we are serious about defending the values of the European Union."
By the way, about the #EUarmy that #Brussels doesn't want. pic.twitter.com/H9JNEARidT
— Terence Strong (@AuthorSASplus) May 6, 2015
Threat to NATO?
While Juncker has cited the Ukraine crisis and the perceived threat of Russia as a reason to build a European army, some experts believe creating such a military alliance would act to limit NATO's — and in turn America's — influence in Europe.
Following Juncker's earlier comments, Mateusz Piskorski, head of the European Center for Geopolitical Analysis told Sputnik that any moves to create an EU army were "anti-American."
"So, I think regardless of the anti-Russian rhetoric of Jean Claude Juncker, who is of course convincing everyone that such a project would be directed against Russia, or against a possible Russian threat, practically, this idea would be a kind of liberation from the point of view of Europe… Because we have already seen some comments from American experts and US politicians who are convincing the Europeans that NATO is enough and that they shouldn't care about other security structures other than NATO," he said.
"So it's a kind of paradox because on the one hand, Juncker tries to be politically correct and is convincing everyone that we need protection from Russia, while on the other hand, the very essence and idea of this project would be quite anti-American, or would also be directed against the American military presence in Europe."
EU Army — Who Would Support It?
While German officials have shown an interest in establishing a pan-European army, which would ultimately drive further EU integration, other member states within have scoffed at the idea.
EU #defence spending is an impressive €190 billion yet it is fragmented between 28 national defence policies. http://t.co/DEQqhmBA1n #EUarmy
— Eutopia Magazine (@EutopiaMag) May 5, 2015
The UK has vehemently opposed the proposals in the past, with the British government saying there was "no prospect" of them supporting such a plan.
"Our position is crystal clear that defense is a national — not an EU — responsibility and that there is no prospect of that position changing and no prospect of a European army," a government spokesperson told Sputnik.
London — often seen as America's closest ally in Europe — has also said that the need for an EU army is unnecessary, given the European presence of US-led NATO forces.
EU leaders are set to meet for talks to review Europe's security policy in June, however analysts say that no radical announcements are expected.
