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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.

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    09February 2012
    Iran: a revolutionary republic in transition
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    Iran is in the throes of a transition where its fundamental tenets are being called into question. This paper provides an in-depth assessment of Iranian state and society since the 1979 revolution, focusing particularly on the social and political turmoil of the past five years.

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    26January 2012
    The EU and Syria: everything but force?
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    Admirers of the European Union frequently point out that it has a comprehensive selection of non-military crisis management tools. These include the bloc’s economic leverage, mechanisms for deploying civilian peace operations and close working relationships with the United Nations and other multilateral organisations.

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    10January 2012
    Silence, on tourne !
    By

    Le vendredi 6 janvier, considéré par les coordinations locales de la révolution syrienne comme le jour de « l’internationalisation de la protection », résultant du sentiment croissant d’incapacité d’agir de la délégation des observateurs, la ville de Damas a connu un « attentat » meurtrier faisant plus de 25 victimes. 

  • 23November 2011
    Annual Conference 2011: the Arab democratic wave: what role for the global players?

    The EUISS 2011 Annual Conference aims to provide a high-profile forum for a debate among major global players (the members of the G20) and the international institutions on the most appropriate answers to the transformations that are currently taking place in the Arab world.

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    18November 2011
    Egyptian democracy and the Muslim Brotherhood
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    This publication examines the current context and future prospects in Egypt ahead of the first round of parliamentary elections in November, with special attention to the role and position of the Muslim Brotherhood. The contributors examine the various options, opportunities and challenges facing both domestic and external actors with regard to the country’s future and the Muslim Brotherhood’s political trajectory.

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    15November 2011
    How could the Arab democratic wave change Africa?
    By

    The Arab democratic wave has not had an effect on Africa as much as some had hoped. But the situation on the other side of the Sahara is more nuanced. Here, the author explores several scenarios where sub-Saharan African nations may face crucial turning points.

  • 27October 2011
    EU-Washington Forum 2011

    A keynote speech by H.E. the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic opened the 2011 EU-Washington Forum which welcomed high-ranking officials and well-known experts from both sides of the Atlantic.

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    24August 2011
    Libya: getting it right
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    As the 42-year dictatorship in Libya nears its end, it is important we get it right in dealing with the post-Gaddafi era as the process moves, in all likelihood, from military confrontation to democratic transition. A democratic Libya is an important new driving force in the Arab democratic wave. It builds on the growing momentum created by the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions, making it increasingly more difficult for authoritarian leaders in North Africa and the Middle East to sustain their policies. With hope, Bashar Assad realises this.

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    16August 2011
    Syria: violence as a communications strategy
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    The West cannot be neutral over Syria. Hesitating and a lack of clarity is making the process of change take longer and become much more costly.

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    09June 2011
    Is the Ahmedinejad-Khamenei spat reshaping Iranian politics?
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    The very public disagreement between Iran’s Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, over the sacking of Intelligence Minister, Heydar Moslehi, has catapulted the conservatives who currently control all the major institutions of the Islamic Republic into an acrimonious tailspin.

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    20March 2010
    Assessment of the Barcelona Process in the Light of the New International and Regional Situation
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    Considering the complexity of contemporary Euro-Mediterranean relations, in this paper the author analyses the variety of unilateral, bilateral and multilateral frameworks and instruments used to structure and implement Euro-Mediterranean strategies and policies.

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    10March 2010
    Engaging Hamas: rethinking the Quartet Principles
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    The Middle East Quartet has laid out three conditions for the recognition of a Palestinian government: the renunciation of violence, recognition of Israel’s right to exist and a commitment to all agreements signed by the PLO and Israel.

    Recently, the EU appears to have shifted its language, demonstrating increasing flexibility in its application of the principles and emphasising the need for intra-Palestinian reconciliation. But is this a step in the right direction? 

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    22February 2010
    Education, research and gender: the sources of progress
    By

    Education is a highly political issue on which the whole value system of any society pivots, and in relation to the Mediterranean, it is where the resolution of the current socioeconomic imbalance lies. In two essays, Robert Fouchet, Emmanuelle Moustier and Azza Karam analyse the social structures of education in the countries of the southern and eastern Mediterranean.

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    18February 2010
    Human security: a new perspective for Euro-Mediterranean cooperation
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    From EU’s perspective, the geostrategic importance of the Mediterranean region has increased significantly in the post-Cold War period. To meet new security challenges, the EU initiated the Barcelona Process. However, the authors argue that going forward, EU policies in the Mediterranean need to go beyond conventional understandings of security by focusing on ‘human security’ in helping to resolve ongoing regional political conflicts.

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    05February 2010
    Yemen: the evolution of a problem
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    President Saleh faces two internal security threats that pose a more serious challenge to his continued rule than al-Qaeda: the ongoing Houthi rebellion in the north of the country that began in 2004, and the growing movement to restore the independence of South Yemen.

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    19November 2009
    Chute de mur(s)
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    Sans doute la chute du mur de Berlin en 1989 ne semble avoir eu que peu d’effets directs sur le pays. Les gauches locales, comme toutes les gauches du monde, en ont le plus souffert en perdant de leur superbe. Le mur dans sa chute signifiait alors une certaine mort de la gauche. Mais au moins sa destruction introduisait, dans le contexte marocain, l’idée que les choses les plus solides, les plus durables, celles que l’on croit le moins susceptibles de s’écrouler, peuvent s’effondrer.

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    09November 2009
    Lighthouse Europe
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    The fall of the Berlin Wall led to one of the most dramatic transformation processes in Europe and in the international system. With historical hindsight, it is clear that it was a landmark moment for the European integration process which resulted in the end of ‘divided Europe’, and created an environment conducive to the unification of Europe. As in other parts of Europe, this historical moment was warmly welcomed in Turkey by democratic forces which believed in an inclusionary European integration process that would consolidate democracy throughout the Continent.

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    04November 2009
    The Obama Moment
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    'The Obama Moment' provides an authoritative analysis of the most topical global questions of our time: multilateralism, the economy, disarmament and climate change. Will the election of Obama facilitate enhanced transatlantic co-operation in dealing with these and other challenges?

  • 19October 2009
    ESDP: The first 10 years (1999-2009)
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    This book breaks new ground by providing the first comprehensive review of every ESDP operation to date. It explains how the EU institutions responsible for international crisis management have developed and functioned, reviews the civil and military resources available to the ESDP, and analyses the key partnerships between the EU and other international organisations.

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    15October 2009
    Energy and global economic crisis: the chances for progress
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    In this second 'Ten Papers for Barcelona 2010' paper, the authors look at developments based on interdependency and economic integration carried out by the EU in the Mediterranean and how energy efficiency and the development of renewable energies could offer great opportunities for the region.

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