The Barcelona process

I refer to Ranier Fsadni's Opinion A Story With Two Points (December 8). Mr Fsadni's analysis is, from my perspective, much closer to reality than the "wait and see until 2010" current attitude. The EU always has taken its time (sometimes even more) to come up with decisions and to reform itself. The aims that were achieved were so on grounds that they were reachable and not too far away. The Barcelona process was regarded as an ambitious project since its conception for some and difficult to put into practice for others. In my view, the EU should try to make the process viable from now, for example through the revision of the ambitious goals and revision of time frames.

By putting the agreement back on track, it would surely give positive signals of good will. Intensification of discussions in order to establish the nature of problems as well as taking a more pragmatic approach would surely be beneficial to both EU and its southern partners. The whole process is a win-win situation for all parties concerned, but on grounds of issues such as cultural difference it is not surprising that the process is to be lengthy and slower than what might have previously been planned. I do see this occasion as a golden one, which should not be missed. Isn't "compromise" the engine of the EU? Well, in my view this concept should also be applied to the Mediterranean. Time is money, as we say, and from now until 2010 there are still five years to go. Let us not let the future history say that 2005-2010 were wasted years for the Mediterranean.