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Last Updated: Jul 12, 2008 - 9:14:43 AM |
The new partnership, the Barcelona Process: Union for the
Mediterranean, has encountered criticism from both Europe and from Arab
states.
The idea was proposed by France and endorsed by European Union leaders
as a way of bolstering ties between Europe and its southern neighbors
and improving security and trade cooperation.
Besides the economic benefits, the union is also seen as a way to
bolster political ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
Arab states are concerned that their joining a union which includes
Israel implies they are normalizing relations with the Jewish state.
They do not wish to be in such a union, as long as Israel fails to make
concessions in its negotiations with Palestinians and the Syrians.
Three of the 22 Arab League members – Egypt, Jordan and Mauritania –
have full diplomatic relations with Israel. Libya has been the most
outspoken in its opposition to the idea. Libyan President Mu’ammar
Al-Qadhafi has slammed the proposal, labeling it an “insult” to Arabs
and Africans and a revival of colonialist policies.
He urged Arab leaders to turn down the proposal, and said the idea was
doomed from the start. “We do not belong to Brussels,” he said. A
source at the EU said it came as no surprise that Libya was criticizing
the project, given its scaled-back involvement in the Barcelona Process.
Improving ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors has always been a
feature of the Barcelona Process, the source said, and there is no
reason this should stop now. “Outside the United Nations it’s the only
forum where Israel can sit around the same table with Arab neighbors,
including countries with which it has no diplomatic relations, such as
Lebanon and Syria,” he said.
Regarding fears that Israel will be isolated in the new union, the
source said this concern will be mitigated somewhat by the fact that
several members of the new union belong to the southern bloc of
non-European states and are not Arab, such as Turkey, Albania and
Croatia. He believed Israel would likely not be cast aside. “I
understand that most heads of state will be there, which indicates
willingness from the start,” he said.
Source:Ocnus.net 2008
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