Arab regional integration as a prerequisite for a successful Euro-Mediterranean Partnership

Article is part of a special issue on Euro-Mediterranean relations after September 11.

Article abstract:

The Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP) in its current structure is not conducive to greater welfare in the Mediterranean Partner Countries (MPCs) because of, among other reasons, its emphasis on free trade which compounds existing social, economic and financial problems in the South, and its failure to deal adequately with long-term security risks such as scarcity of food and water, desertification, pollution, rampant poverty and authoritarian rule. This study highlights some of these problems through trends observed in the Arab world since the 1970s, and argues, using Tunisia as a case study, that the EMP has not tackled these problems effectively. It further contends that the EMP could serve the interests of Europe and the MPCs better provided that its membership is extended to all Arab countries and that the latter achieve a high degree of economic integration to justify the creation of viable productive projects and to allow an effective participation in the globalised economy.
The contribution examines some of the obstacles to Arab integration and proposes measures that the Arab countries and the European Union could take in order to deal with them.