Brussels, 31/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 30 March, European Council President Donald Tusk began his tour of three countries of the Mediterranean, two on the northern shore - Malta and Spain (both member states) - finishing off in Tunis on Tuesday afternoon, where he was to pay tribute to the victims of the attack on the Bardo Museum and reiterate his desire to relaunch European southern policy.
The countries on both sides of the Mediterranean feel that they are being cast aside in favour of the eastern dimension, which has been reinforced by increasing focus on the challenges of the eastern neighbourhood, as a result of the Ukrainian crisis in particular. Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy welcomed Tusk's visit: “it is good news that the president of the European Council is getting involved in the southern dimension of the neighbourhood policy, which is of strategic importance to Spain” - a country which is “traditionally one of the main players in this field”. It is, he went on to say, vitally important that Europe helps to create an area of prosperity on both sides of the Mediterranean.
In Madrid and in Valletta, Tusk confirmed the feeling that the challenges in the Mediterranean area are more than the sum of their parts: political crises, particularly in Libya; security threats, uncontrollable flows of illegal migrants and economic aspects in view of which the Mediterranean as a whole feels that the mobilisation of European budgetary resources is growing less: “only by working together can we tackle the roots of instability”, Tusk tweeted reassuringly. “We need a strong European response for the Mediterranean region”, he stressed. “This trip is important to me as president of the European Council. My aim is to put together a united European response to tackle the instability in the region.” However, he made no reference to the conflict in the Middle East, which has always had, and will continue to have, an influence on the course of the Euro-Mediterranean policy. The nature of the government Israel will have (with or without Avigdor Lieberman as its minister for foreign affairs, in particular) will be pivotal and could ruin the efforts underway, according to specialists on the dossier.
After his meeting with the Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Tusk reiterated that “only a united EU can manage the consequences of instability, such as illegal migration and terrorism. This is why I decided to include these issues on the agenda of the European Council and to discuss them with the EU leaders. We need to think again.”
This call for a change in direction in this neighbourhood policy will be discussed in Barcelona on 13 April, at a meeting of the foreign affairs ministers of the southern shore. “We need to look for new and creative ideas, rather than just sticking to the old ones”, Tusk stressed.
In Madrid on Tuesday morning, he repeated his message in favour of breathing new life into the Mediterranean policy and paid tribute to Spain, which he described as an “important partner in the Mediterranean”. Rajoy said that Europe cannot stand by and do nothing to tackle the inequalities between the two shores, or indeed terrorism. “We need to work with the Arab and Muslim countries, which are suffering as a result of terrorism. It's not a fight between Islam and Christianity, but between civilisation and barbarism.”
Rajoy reported back to Tusk on preparations for the conference (informal and outside the framework of the Union for the Mediterranean - UfM) of 13 April, if it takes place. It will be an “important opportunity for the member states of the EU and our southern partners to discuss common challenges, but also common opportunities”, said Tusk. (Fathi B'Chir)