After years of speechifying… After years of speechifying and wasting time and money, the Union for the Mediterranean (UFM) finally seems to be moving in the right direction. I am not referring here to the EU's relations with Mediterranean countries, relations that have varied widely between times of enthusiasm and times of tragedy. No, I am referring to the UfM, which has never properly existed in reality because the EU's neighbours are such a disparate group of countries that have no real connections with each other. Albania and Montenegro and North Africa, for example, or Turkey (which didn't even want to be part of the UfM) with Monaco, or Mauritania with Slovenia. The UfM system served as a façade for some highly ambitious politicians, with empty official ceremonies. So what has changed? The arrival at the UfM Headquarters in Barcelona of a secretary general with clear, tangible ideas. Fathallah Sijilmassi, a Moroccan who used to be an ambassador in Brussels and therefore has direct experience of the problems of EU relations with the southern rim of the Mediterranean.
Tangible programme. The new secretary general told this newsletter's reporter Fathi B'Chir about his plans and work programme (see EUROPE 10595). It emerges that he wants to make a distinction between the Western and Eastern Mediterranean, which have different problems and aims, “focusing work on the sub-regional level”; and to concentrate on “tangible projects and seeking finance for them”. Countries taking part in projects will vary in line with their real interest in a specific project. The secretary general expects to discuss policy routinely with the European Commission (which co-chairs the UfM for the EU). The EIB (European Investment Bank) already has a permanent representative at the UfM in Barcelona, and the EBRD will soon be appointing one.
If I have interpreted him aright, the time of grand statements and rhetoric about a common history and a mixing of civilisations is now over and the word “Union” (which has a special meaning for the EU) will continue for sake of appearance, while work focuses on getting projects up and running.
Problems remain. It is clear that the new-look UfM will not change the EU's relations with its Southern Mediterranean neighbours that gained their freedom in the Arab Spring and the well-known repercussions on other countries in the region. We must not close our eyes to the genuine problems in and within these countries due to various countries opting for Muslim movements (some of them moderate, but some fanatical), the danger of Libya dividing into two, the very serious problems in Egypt and Algeria's desire for autonomy in its oil talks with the EU - not to mention the growing difficulties between various Arab countries and Israel (which is also in the UfM) and the problem of Syria (which has temporarily decided to leave the UfM).
There is a tendency for UfM countries to divide up into small sub-groups wanting different types of cooperation with the EU. Several of these sub-groups exist. A few days ago, we reported on a 5+5 ministerial conference among five EU member states (France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Malta) and five North African countries (Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Libya and Mauritania). Participants said they were planning to institutionalise their group due to the failure of the UfM, as shown by the fact it has virtually been suspended since the end of 2008 (see EUROPE 10558).
That 5+5 conference was just one example of the attempts to make EU cooperation more tangible with some Mediterranean countries. At the moment, it is Egypt that is generating the greatest concerns because it is such a big country and the clashes between civil society and the army generate uncertainty and dangers. I will soon be discussing the problems in my column, including areas that tend to be ignored.
Setting an example. Against the general backdrop, the changes in the Union for the Mediterranean are positive and may improve the EU's relations with its Mediterranean neighbours. This transformation will not provide a miracle solution to the problems generated by the empty rhetoric of the past, but it has at least assigned reasonable objectives and the UfM may now play a useful role and set an example. (FR/transl.fl)