Rethinking the EU’s Med. policy

This week marks the 15th anniversary of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership launched in Barcelona in November 1995. At the time, the 15 EU member states and 12 Mediterranean partners pledged to set up a region where peace, stability and prosperity would reign.

The subsequent Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, which Malta has played a proactive role in, has sought to create the world’s largest free trade area by 2010. Fifteen years later much has been achieved in this regard. Despite a global decline in trade of 11 per cent in 2009, growth has continued to be registered across the Mediterranean.

Even more remarkable, there has been no backlash on the principle of free trade. Protectionism has not made a return in policy making circles.

As the second decade of the new millennium beckons, an assessment of regional dynamics in the Mediterranean area however shows that countries along the southern shore continue to view the resurgence of regionalism that has taken place since the end of the Cold War as more of a risk than an opportunity.

The decision to postpone the summit of the Union for the Mediterranean, scheduled to take place in November in Barcelona, highlights the predicament the Mediterranean finds itself in.

Despite its many shortcomings, the first 15 years of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership must be seen as a confidence building mechanism that has succeeded in avoiding an escalation of hostilities in the Mediterranean. The regular process of north-south diplomatic dialogue that has been maintained is a mechanism that should be safeguarded at all costs. Given the diversity of states in the Mediterranean and the transitional nature of post-Cold War times, this is a feat that should be acknowledged by everyone.

The European Union can also address its economic downturn by concentrating more attention on supporting economic growth in the proximate region that is dependent on a stable euro, namely the Mediterranean. The economic agreements in the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, the Union for the Mediterranean and the European Neighbourhood Policy provide the framework within which such cooperation can take place.

The Union for the Mediterranean must thus be seen as a litmus test of the European Union’s objective of assisting in promoting stability and prosperity in states that border its own member states. Moreover, Euro-Mediterranean relations will also have a major bearing on the extent to which the European Union is able to influence positively development in Africa and the Middle East.

As the European External Action Service (EEAS) takes shape it is essential that from day one it provides a long-term strategic approach to EU foreign affairs. The EEAS should respect one basic principle in order to be successful. It must provide an added value. There must be synergies and specialisation between the EEAS and member states. The Mediterranean provides an excellent opportunity where such an approach should be adopted with the specific objective of renewing strategic thinking towards the goals enshrined in the Barcelona Declaration of November 1995. Such an approach will demonstrate clearly that the EU is a serious and credible player in international relations.

The Union for the Mediterranean introduces a very important perspective that to date has been absent when it comes to promoting regional integration in the Mediterranean. The UfM project driven initiative can enhance Euro-Mediterranean interdependence, a prerequisite to being able to encourage confidence and eventual trust between states in the area. The raising of political and economic interests and stakes will serve as an insurance policy against self-centred and myopic policy making that for too long has hindered trans-Mediterranean integration.

Prof. Calleya is an international relations analyst.