The Helsinki Headline Goal has been superseded by the Headline Goal 2010.
The UK declaration to both the Helsinki Headline Goal and the Headline Goal 2010 were based on units of capability and not numbers of armed forces personnel. These offers do not commit the UK to any action and requests for forces to support EU operations are considered on a voluntary case-by-case basis. Copies of the UK response to the Headline Goal 2010 are available in the Library of the House.
There is no European Rapid Reaction Force. However, the EU has an objective to be able rapidly to generate forces to support crisis management operations. The EU Battlegroup initiative has been developed to help meet this requirement for rapid response.
The UK’s offer of forces that could be potentially made available to support EU operations whether through our response to the headline goal 2010 or through the provision of a Battlegroup does not commit the UK to any action. Requests for forces to support EU operations are considered on a voluntary case-by-case basis.