You are here

MENA

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is a fragmented region: in spite of its relative cultural and historical homogeneity, it has some of the lowest levels of intra-regional trade, political cooperation and legal migration in the world.

This is largely due to the fact that, since the end of the Second World War, it has experienced the full spectrum of political violence. Conventional, hybrid, and civil wars, revolutions, and terrorism have hindered political and economic development, and created fertile ground for further violence. Breaking this ‘conflict trap’ is imperative for the states of the region, as well as those actors who have a stake in it.

For the EU, the MENA is of strategic importance for three reasons:

  • it is an immediate geographic neighbour,
  • a crucial passage for goods traveling to and from Europe (including oil and gas),
  • and it has been historically unstable.

The region’s security and economic situation is consequently closely intertwined with that of Europe. This explains the Union’s desire to contribute to regional stability through different means such as the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), the Barcelona Process and the Union for the Mediterranean.

The EUISS seeks to contribute to the EU’s overall effort in the MENA by providing in-depth analyses on a number of key issues affecting the region.

Pages

  • Download Brief
    11June 2020
    From bad to worse? The impact(s) of Covid-19 on conflict dynamics
    The global crisis caused by the Covid-19 outbreak has had particularly disruptive consequences for conflict-affected countries around the world. Armed groups have capitalised on the crisis, while the global distraction caused by the pandemic has made it difficult to seize opportunities for peace. This Brief analyses key repercussions in conflict-affected countries in general, and in five countries in particular: Colombia, Libya, Sudan, Ukraine and Yemen.
  • Download Brief
    21April 2020
    Beyond Yemen’s militiadoms
    By
    The ongoing conflict in Yemen is complex and multi-layered, with the involvement of rival regional powers adding a geopolitical dimension to the war. As the national framework has disintegrated, local rivalries have intensified, leaving more room for foreign state interference in the country. In this fragmented political landscape, militias and other armed groups have come to play a prominent role in Yemen’s security governance. This Brief analyses the intertwined layers of conflict in Yemen and their implications for war resolution efforts, arguing that reforming the state on the basis of a decentralisation of power is key to rebuilding national institutions and achieving peace.
  • Download document
    24January 2020
    What if...? 14 futures for 2024
    Edited by
    With contributions from

    According to a famous science fiction film, the future is what you make of it. This Chaillot Paper takes this quote from Back to the Future to heart, proposing 14 different portraits of the future for the year 2024.

  • Photo of EUISS podcast recording studio
    09January 2020
    EUISS foresight podcast – Season 1

    The EUISS ‘What if’ podcast is a foreign policy foresight conversation: it looks at fictional scenarios that could happen between now and the end of 2021.

  • Florence Gaub speaking at the European Parliament
    12November 2019
    Florence Gaub at the European Parliament

    Florence Gaub was invited to brief the Subcommittee on Security and Defence.

  • Florence Gaub presents her paper at the lectern
    28October 2019
    Middle East Foresight Forum

    On 28 of October 2019, the EUISS organised the Middle East Foresight Forum to discuss the key challenges ahead for the region.

  • Download document
    19September 2019
    Arab Futures 2.0
    The road to 2030
    By

    At first glance, the MENA appears particularly unsuited to conducting foresight exercises due to its many disruptive and surprising developments. But it is precisely because the region features so many sudden events that foresight here is crucial. This Chaillot Paper opens with three scenarios which lay out the regional state of affairs in 2030, with the catalysts or agents of change elaborated thereafter.

  • Download document
    18July 2019
    EUISS Yearbook of European Security 2019
    By

    The 2019 Yearbook of European Security provides an overview of events in 2018 that were significant for European security and charts major developments in the EU’s external action and security and defence policy.

  • Florence Gaub, Gustav Lindstrom, Stanislav Secrieru, Daniel Fiott
    03June 2019
    14th High-Level Course on CSDP

    From 3-4 June 2019, the EUISS supported the (ESDC, the National University of Public Service of Hungary and CEPOL with the 14th CSDP high-level course 2018-2019.

  • Download Brief
    09April 2019
    Iceberg ahead! Rethinking conflict prevention
    By
    This Brief launches a new EUISS series on conflicts, by focusing on the renewed attention to prevention in international peacebuilding at a time when the human and economic costs of violent conflict keep rising.

Pages

Pages

Pages

Pages

  • 06November 2014
    Presentation of YES 2014 in Vienna

    In partnership with the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, the EUISS presented the abridged German version of its Yearbook of European of European Security 2014 on 6 November in the Austrian capital.

  • 11September 2014
    EUISS annual conference 2014

    The EUISS held its annual conference on 11/12 September in central Paris. This year’s event, entitled ‘European security in a changing global environment’, was an opportunity to convene numerous policy planners and think tankers from across the Europe to discuss European security during a period of major institutional change within the Union.

  • 30July 2014
    The Arab Foresight Group

    The Arab Foresight Group was an initiative undertaken by the EU Institute for Security Studies to bring together experts on the Arab World from Europe and the southern neighbourhood to discuss the most pressing issues in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region over the next the ten years.

  • Keynote speech by John McCain
    20May 2014
    EU-Washington Forum 2014 – North Africa and the Middle East: common challenges

    The annual transatlantic event of the EUISS – organised this year in collaboration with the Middle East Institute – brought together over 100 participants from both sides of the Atlantic to debate current pressing issues in the MENA region.

  • 03October 2013
    A transforming Arab world: between continuity and change

    On 3-4 October, almost 100 academics and policymakers from over 35 different countries gathered at the Annual EuroMeSCo conference to debate the state of affairs in the Arab world since 2011 as well as Euro-Mediterranean relations.

  • 25April 2012
    Roundtable on the Improvement of the EU’s Capabilities to Prevent Mass Atrocities

    This seminar was organised by the EUISS in cooperation with the Foundation for the International Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities to examine the EU’s current capabilities and practices in the domain of mass atrocity prevention.

  • 16April 2012
    A new political landscape in the MENA countries: how to fine-tune our modes of engagement?

    This seminar, which took place in Brussels on 16 April 2012, brought together a group of European and American experts and policymakers to brainstorm, ‘compare notes’ and discuss ways of strengthening the EU-US dialogue on addressing the new dynamics in the MENA region.

  • 30March 2012
    'Listening to Unfamiliar Voices - The Arab Democratic Wave' - Brussels book launch

    The latest EUISS book ‘Listening to Unfamiliar Voices – The Arab Democratic Wave’ was launched in Brussels on 30 March 2012. The book, written by the EUISS Director Álvaro de Vasconcelos, was presented to Ambassadors, high profile journalists and EU officials in attendance. 

  • 26March 2012
    'Listening to Unfamiliar Voices - The Arab Democratic Wave' - Cairo book launch

    The latest EUISS book ‘Listening to Unfamiliar Voices – The Arab Democratic Wave’ was launched in Cairo on 26 March 2012. 

  • 25March 2012
    Egypt's transition to democracy: constitutional challenges

    This seminar examined the political transition currently underway in Egypt, drawing on the democratic experiences of other nations such as Brazil, Indonesia and Portugal to analyse the constitution making processes, civil-military relations and the role of political Islam in the Arab world.

Pages