Arab countries still uncertain about Med. Union

Arab countries invited to the summit launching the Mediterranean Union in Paris next month have requested clarifications from the EU over a number of issues before agreeing to attend.

Diplomats yesterday told The Times that one of the main bones of contention seems to be the participation of Israel.

"Some Arab states do not want to appear on the same table with Israel," the sources told The Times, "as this may appear as a normalisation of relations between the Arab world and Israel".

The issue was brought up by Algerian Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci during a meeting of Mediterranean countries last week.

Mr Medelci said that the Arab countries invited to participate in the Med Union initiative have already asked for clarifications on the consequences of Israel joining the Mediterranean Union and will be waiting for an answer from the EU.

He made it clear that the Mediterranean Union must not normalise relations between Israel and Arab countries as this process is linked to other debates and commitments.

The Algerian Foreign Minister referred in particular to an Arab peace initiative in 2002, which calls for the Jewish state to withdraw from the Palestinian territories it occupied in 1967, before talking about normalisation of ties.

Other issues concerning the Arab states involve the administrative structures, financing and decision-making process of the Mediterranean Union.

Diplomats said that Arab states fear that Brussels will dominate the decision-making process as already happened with the stalled Barcelona Euro-Med process.

The Paris summit is expected to decide on the location of the new organisation's secretariat. Tunisia and Morocco have already expressed their wish to host the secretariat. Malta is also in the running on the EU side.

However, diplomats said yesterday that Brussels can be the alternative solution with the new secretariat forming part of the already existing administrative mechanism of the EU.

EU leaders meeting in Brussels during their quarterly summit meeting later this month are expected to decide on the way forward for the Med Union.