Operation Artemis, formally European Union Force Democratic Republic of the Congo (EUFOR), was a short-term

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

-led UN-authorised military mission to the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

in 2003, during the

Ituri conflict The Ituri conflict () is an ongoing low-intensity conflict, low intensity asymmetrical warfare, asymmetrical conflict between the farmer, agriculturalist Lendu and pastoralism, pastoralist Hema (ethnicity), Hema ethnic groups in the Ituri Provin ...

. ARTEMIS is considered the first military operation led by the EU, the first autonomous EU operation, the first rapid response mission of the EU, first operation outside Europe, first operation applying the principle of the framework nation and first example of "relay operation", conducted in cooperation between the EU and the United Nations. The deployment of EUFOR troops quickly decreased the conflict's intensity. It marked the first autonomous EU military mission outside Europe and an important milestone in development of the

European Security and Defence Policy The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is the European Union's (EU) course of action in the fields of defence and crisis management, and a main component of the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The CSDP involves the de ...

Background

During the

Second Congo War The Second Congo War, also known as Africa's World War or the Great War of Africa, was a major conflict that began on 2 August 1998, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, just over a year after the First Congo War. The war initially erupted ...

, the

occurred in the

Ituri Region The Ituri Interim Administration is an interim body that administers the Ituri region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was established in 2003 by the Ituri Pacification Commission and supported by the UN mission in the DRC. History I ...

alongside Lake Albert and the

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

n border. The Ituri conflict was fought between two non-governmental informally organised ethnic groups, the

Lendu The Lendu language is a Central Sudanic language spoken by the Balendru, an ethno-linguistic agriculturalist group residing in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo in the area west and northwest of Lake Albert, specifically the Ituri Provin ...

and

Hema Hema may refer to: * Hemā (mythology), a figure from Polynesian mythology * HEMA (store), a Dutch chain of stores * Hema (supermarket) (盒马), a supermarket chain in China * Hema maps, an Australian map publisher * Hema people, an ethnic grou ...

, that had caused the deaths of thousands of people by 2003.

2003 Ituri conflict fighting

In 2003, Lendu and Hema

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

s were battling for control of the town after

n troops withdrew after the signing of a peace agreement, and Congolese police fled. During discussions regarding the deployment of an international force, UN Security Council diplomats were mindful of a repetition of the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

in 1994. Following a series of massacres, including the

Bogoro attack The assault on Bogoro, which occurred on February 24, 2003, was an attack on the village of Bogoro in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by the Nationalist and Integrationist Front (FNI) and the Front for Patriotic Resistance of Ituri (FR ...

of February 2003, and reports by the

United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or MONUSCO (an acronym based on its French name ), is a United Nations peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A planned withdraw ...

(MONUC) of serious human rights abuses, the

Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

adopted the Resolution 1484 on 30 May 2003 and authorised the deployment of a French led Interim Multinational Emergency Force (IMEF) to the regional capital of

Bunia Bunia is the capital Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, city of Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). It was part of the Orientale Province until that province's dissolution. It lies at an elevation of on a ...

UN observer mission and withdrawal of Ugandan troops

In the beginning of 2003, the

(MONUC) observer teams present in that country since 1999, monitored serious combats and human rights violations in

Ituri Ituri Province ( in Swahili language, Swahili) is one of the 21 provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the Subdivisions of the DR Congo#New provinces, 2015 repartitioning. Ituri, Bas-Uele, Haut-Uele, and Tshopo provinces ...

province where the Ituri conflict had been unfolding for the previous four years. The withdrawal of 7,000

n troops in April 2003 led to a deteriorating security situation in the Ituri region, endangering the peace process in DRC. In April 2003, 800 Ugandan soldiers were deployed in

and one observer died in a mine explosion. In May 2003, two military observers were killed by a militia.

Intervention

The UN Secretary-General

Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...

called for establishing and deploying a temporary multi-national force to the area until the weakened MONUC mission could be reinforced. On 30 May 2003, the

adopted the Resolution 1484 authorising the deployment of an Interim Multinational Emergency Force (IMEF) to

with a task to secure the airport, protect

internally displaced person An internally displaced person (IDP) is someone who is forced to leave their home but who remains within their country's borders. They are often referred to as refugees, although they do not fall within the legal definitions of a refugee. I ...

s in camps and the civilians in the town. The

French Government The Government of France (, ), officially the Government of the French Republic (, ), exercises Executive (government), executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister of France, prime minister, who is the head of government, ...

had already shown interest in leading the operation. It soon broadened to an EU-led mission with France as the "Lead nation" providing the bulk of the personnel (900 of the 1400 troops) and complemented by contributions from both EU and non-EU nations. The force was supported by French aircraft based at

N'Djamena N'Djamena ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Chad, largest city of Chad. It is also a Provinces of Chad, special statute region, divided into 10 districts or ''arrondissements'', similar to the city of Paris. Originally calle ...

and

Entebbe Entebbe is a city in Central Region, Uganda, Central Uganda which is located on Lake Victoria peninsula, approximately southwest of the Ugandan capital city, Kampala. Entebbe was once the seat of government for the Protectorate of Uganda pri ...

airfields. A small Swedish Special Forces group ( SSG and FJS IK, the latter being an elite specially trained company from the

Swedish Parachute Ranger School The Parachute Ranger School (, FJS), is the Swedish Army's paratrooper ranger school and the home of '' Fallskärmsjägarna'' (Parachute Rangers) and ''Särskilda operationsgruppen'' (Special Operations Group). The school was founded in 1952 by c ...

) was also added. * Military forces:

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France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

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South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

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, * Headquarters staff:

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Operation Artemis was launched on 12 June and the IMEF completed its deployment in the following three weeks. The force was successful in stabilising the situation in Bunia and enforcing the UN presence in the DRC. On 1 September 2003, responsibility for the security of the region was handed over to the MONUC mission. The number of authorised personnel in the MONUC mission was previously extended in Resolution 1493. Following the rapid deployment of about 1800 troops to the region in June 2003, Bunia was secured but massacres continued in the countryside. On 1 September 2003, responsibility for the security of the region was handed over to the MONUC mission.

Milestone

By December 2003, one of major warring parties in the region, the

Union of Congolese Patriots The Union of Congolese Patriots (, or UPC) is a political and militia group in Ituri, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, formed towards the end of the Second Congo War. It was founded by Thomas Lubanga in 2001 and was one of six su ...

(UPC) had split and fighting in the region decreased significantly. Artemis was the first autonomous EU military mission outside Europe - an important milestone in development of the

References

Bibliography

András István Türke András István Türke is a Hungarian historian, political scientist and diplomacy & security policy expert.http://europavarietas.org/andras_turke Homepage of András István Türke He is assistant professor at the University of Szeged, where he ...

, La géopolitique des premières missions de l`Union européenne en Afrique, Paris : L`Harmattan, 2016 (2) * Türke, András István
The Operation ARTEMIS in the Democratic Republic of Congo
CERPESC Analyses, 07/AF/02/2008 - 21 January 2008

Artemis In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology, Artemis (; ) is the goddess of the hunting, hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, transitions, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. In later tim ...

Ituri conflict Battles involving the Democratic Republic of the Congo Battles in 2003 Conflicts in 2003 {{DEFAULTSORT:Artemis, Operation