At the proposal of Belgium, a mini-summit on European defence policy was held in Brussels on 29 April. Apart from the host country, its participants included France, Germany and Luxembourg. Defined by many as the “Pacifists’ Summit” due to the stance taken by the four EU members against the war in Iraq and especially against the intervention of the United Kingdom, a member of the EU, at the side of the USA, the meeting discussed the creation of a joint military brigade, to be placed at the disposal according to need of the EU, NATO and the UNO. Also discussed was a deal to unify the command of national armies in the air transport sector and to establish a joint military academy, though without going so far as to establish a military command structure independent of NATO. According to the German Chancellery, the proposals of the mini-summit in which neither the Senior EU representative for foreign policy and common security, Javier Solana, nor any delegate of the Greek presidency of the Union took part do not in any way intend to be binding for the EU or for the deliberations of the Convention on the future of Europe. Romano Prodi, president of the European Commission, was also absent.
