1. INTRODUCTION
This Communication has two aims: (i) to review
the first fifteen months of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and
(ii) to prepare the Union's position and propose, within the Community
framework, guidelines for the conclusions of the second Euro-Mediterranean
Conference of Foreign Affairs Ministers.
1.1. The Euro-Mediterranean Conference
in Barcelona
The Euro-Mediterranean Partnership, established
in Barcelona on 27 and 28 November 1995, brings together the European
Union, its fifteen Member States and the twelve Mediterranean Partners.
The latter set themselves three objectives at the Conference:
- the establishment of a common area of peace and
stability;
- the creation of a shared zone of prosperity through
the establishment of a free trade area and a substantial increase
in financial support from the European Union;
- the development of human resources, the promotion
of understanding between different cultures and exchanges at the
level of civil society.
The Partnership was created in a spirit of equality,
cooperation and solidarity, the aim being to bring the Partners
closer together and so reduce sources of conflict. On the Union's
part, the Partnership is a sign of its willingness to play an increasingly
active role in the region on the political, economic ant social
front.
The European Union's strategic approach to these
activities and initiatives was defined in the context of the Barcelona
Process, which is seen as an indispensable instrument for the achievement
of a common area of peace and stability.
The Ministers participating at the Conference adopted
the Barcelona Declaration and a work programme to give it concrete
effect. The Declaration provides for a meeting of Foreign Affairs
Ministers to be held in one of the Mediterranean Partner countries
during the first half of this year.
1.2. The objectives of the second Ministerial
Conference
The second Euro-Mediterranean Conference of Foreign
Affairs Ministers will be held in Malta on 15 and 16 April, seventeen
months after the Barcelona Conference. It will provide an opportunity,
at political level, to carry out an initial review of the Partnership
and to set the pace for the next eighteen months. After its initial
teething problems, the Process should advance at a more regular
and swifter speed.
The Commission has defined three general
objectives for the second Conference:
- to build upon and endorse the results already
achieved in the framework of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.
Here it is appropriate to highlight the results
achieved under each of the Partnership's three pillars and to identify
any delays or failures. Consistency in these results, in particular
the complementarily between the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership's
bilateral (Association Agreements) and regional pillars must be
established;
- to confirm, in the light of the review,
the strategy and objectives adopted at the inaugural Conference
in November 1995, perhaps modifying certain areas or expanding others.
In this context, one of the major objectives of
the Partnership, i.e. the establishment of free trade between the
European Community and its Mediterranean Partners, will be accomplished
primarily through the implementation of the Euro-Mediterranean Association
Agreements and the ability of the Partners to cope with the problems
involved in the process of transition to a more open economy.
In the Commission's view, the Conference should
provide fresh impetus in this direction and define the measures
required to underpin free trade at regional and subregional level.
The general aim is to move on to a phase where regional cooperation
is efficiently organized to ensure the Partnership's global objectives
are achieved and the Euro-Mediterranean Partners' priorities are
met;
- to adopt additional measures for the period
leading up to the next Ministerial Conference.
A number of areas of mutual interest and fields
in which the Mediterranean Partners expect concrete progress to
be made have been identified in the months since the Barcelona Conference.
At the next meeting, in the spins of partnership forged in Barcelona,
the Union will be able to discuss with its Mediterranean Partners
the areas in which it feels that further progress is possible or
in which other objectives may be set.
2. BILATERAL ASPECTS
2.1. The objectives of the Association Agreements
The Association Agreements are intended to bring
the Mediterranean Partners and the Union closer together through
the gradual establishment of free trade, the provision of EU support
for the economic transition process, cooperation in a whole range
of areas, the opening up of cooperation to civil society and the
undertakings entered into with regard to human rights and democracy.
The Association Agreements have two main objectives
which are interdependent and complimentary: (i) to establish
the Euro-Mediterranean free trade area throughout the region and
(ii) to take full account of the specific characteristics of
each of the Partners. Priority will be given to the improvement
of competitiveness, economic restructuring, administrative reform,
the establishment of economic infrastructure or scientific cooperation
depending on the needs of the individual Partners.
In the economic field, free trade is not an end
in itself, but a means of improving competitiveness and integrating
the Partners into international trade thereby improving living standards.
However, as the partner countries are at different stages of development,
progress towards free trade will be gradual, and will require programmes
to support economic transition and structural adjustment by cushioning
any negative social effects, speeding up economic modernization
and promoting sustainable development. The Euro-Mediterranean free
trade area will be established via the Euro-Mediterranean Association
Agreements and the free trade agreements between the Partners. It
will be a gradual process and should be facilitated by economic
adjustment policies based on market economy principles.
It should be stressed that, in the Commission's
view, economic modernization, social progress and support for the
democratic process are interdependent of a closer relationship with
the Union.
2.2. Negotiation of the Association Agreements
Considerable progress has been made in the conclusion
of the bilateral association agreements between the Union and the
Mediterranean Partners.
The signing of the Association Agreements with
Tunisia, Morocco and Israel will enable full account to be taken,
in the framework of the Mediterranean policy, of the specific characteristics
and needs of these three countries. The Commission welcomes the
signature of an Interim Association Agreement on Trade and Cooperation
with the Palestine Liberation Organization for the benefit of the
Palestinian Authority which will enter into force soon,. confirming
the Palestinians' status as a full Mediterranean Partner.
Negotiations with Jordan, Egypt and Lebanon have
reached their final stages; the Commission considers that the successful
conclusion of these agreements is now within reach. Negotiations
are due to open in the coming weeks with Algeria. The Commission
hopes that exploratory talks in progress with Syria will prepare
the way for the early conclusion of an Association Agreement with
that country.
At the same time, the customs union agreement with
Turkey entered into force on 31 December 1995. Since that date,
the customs union has functioned satisfactorily on the whole. In
particular, customs duties and charges having equivalent effect
have been abolished, as have quantitative restrictions. Turkey has
adopted the Common Customs Tariff as well as an external commercial
policy substantially similar to that of the Community.
The creation of a free trade area by the target
date of 2010, agreed at Barcelona, is an essential instrument to
further approximation and to raise the prosperity level of the Partners.
Since the Agreements are crucial in this perspective, a major effort
will be required on all sides to ensure that they are effectively
implemented. This will also constitute a strong signal to foreign
private investors of the irreversibility of the process and will
contribute to increasing their activities in favour of Mediterranean
partners.
Aside from the actual implementation of the Euro-Mediterranean
bilateral agreements, it is also appropriate to underline the importance
of facilitating the free movement of goods within the Euro-Mediterranean
area by adopting appropriate measures on rules of origin, certification,
the protection of intellectual property rights and competition and
by fostering free trade agreements between the Mediterranean Partners.
2.3. Financial instruments
For the five years from 1995 to 1999, the European
Union agreed to set aside ECU 4,685 million in Community budget
funds for its Mediterranean partners. This major increase in financial
assistance to the Mediterranean partners agreed at the Cannes European
Council and confirmed at the Barcelona Conference constitutes a
major instrument to raise prosperity levels in the region.
During 1996, the Commission committed all the available
funds from the Community budget on assistance to the partners, principally
on support for economic transition, structural adjustment and raising
the level of the socio-economic infrastructure. The Commission will
continue to take the necessary measures to fulfil the undertakings
given in the Cannes agreement and the Barcelona Declaration.
As agreed at Cannes and Barcelona, EIB (European
Investment Bank) lending is also an essential element in the Union's
support for economic modernization in the region, and the EIB should
continue to be closely involved in future Euro-Mediterranean cooperation
through increased loans.
Implementation of the free trade agreements and
a significant increase in financial assistance will not be enough
to ensure the success of the Partnership if they are not accompanied
by a comparable increase in the rate of modernization and economic
structural adjustment in the Mediterranean partner countries. Talks
between the Mediterranean Partners themselves should be stepped
up and financial support from the Union, whether from budget funds
or via the European Investment Bank, should be fully exploited by
the Mediterranean Partners in order to quicken the pace of reform.
3. REGIONAL ASPECTS
3.1. Political and security partnership
3.1.1. Review
Five meetings were held in 1996 in the context
of political and security dialogue. Progress was steady despite
the many political problems. The results are still somewhat tenuous
but the dialogue has become an unequalled forum for the discussion
of political and strategic problems between the whole of the region
and the Union.
Progress has been achieved in three areas:
- a list of confidence-building measures, many
of which are already operational or have been formally approved
for implementation, has been drawn up. Tangible results are expected
on two fronts this year: the network of foreign policy institutes
(EuroMesCo) will produce an independent analysis of the political
and security aspects of the region and a mechanism for cooperation
in the event of natural and human disasters will be set up to ensure
there is effective liaison between the disaster prevention and relief
services in the region. The establishment of a network of defence
institutes and the organization of a seminar on the deployment of
armed forces for humanitarian work will also be discussed;
- a regularly updated Action Plan will serve
as a blueprint for the group's work. Drawn up on the basis of a
progressive working method, the Plan will be discussed and appear
on the agenda of each meeting. It will cover six sectors of activity:
strengthening of democracy, preventive diplomacy, security and confidence-building
measures, disarmament, terrorism and organized crime;
- work has begun on a Euro-Meditemnean- Charter
for Peace and Stability, an institutional mechanism for dialogue
and crisis prevention. The draft charter is now seen as the cornerstone
of the Partnership's political and security pillar.
Two meetings have been organized in Malta, one
in October 1996 and the other in March this year, to disseminate
information to the diplomats of the 27 partner countries and to
help them get to know each other. They have resulted in the creation
of a "Euromed Internet Forum", a site where all documents
relating to the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership are available for
consultation.
3.1.2. Strategy
The political and security dialogue launched in
Barcelona is one of the Partnership's most promising projects: it
represents an entirely new area of cooperation between the European
Union and its Mediterranean Partners, providing a forum for discussion
long sought-after by the states concerned. Within a matter of months
it was working well in terms of both content and organization.
The Commission sees the Conference of Foreign Affairs
Ministers in Malta as an opportunity to endorse the achievements
of the political dialogue, in particular the list of confidence-building
measures and guidelines for the Charter for Peace and Stability.
If a document is signed by Ministers there must also be a commitment
to gradually deepen its content. In this context, the 'European
Union should confirm its practical support for existing and future
confidence-building measures.
It should also be noted that the political dialogue
covers, inter alia, respect for human ' rights and fundamental
freedoms, which is at the heart of the EU's international policy.
The Union feels that the adoption and implementation of international
standards in the field of human rights are essential for lasting
social and political stability. In this context, all the Mediterranean
Partners should be encouraged to sign all international instruments
relating to human rights and to implement them fully.
The Union should also point out that it supports
the efforts made by the Partners to establish a civil society based
on the rule of law, in accordance with the declarations and action
programmes of the world conferences on human rights, population,
social development and women, which the Union and the Mediterranean
Partners helped to organize.
The risk of the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction is a factor of instability in the region. Joint reflection
could be initiated on the implementation of the international non-proliferation
arrangements pertaining to nuclear, balistic, chemical and biological
weapons. Consideration could also be given to adapting these arrangements
at regional level.
In this context, it would be appropriate to improve
the visibility of national efforts to control the export of sensitive
products through the exchange of information.
Finally, the Partners should be encouraged to step
up their efforts to to prevent and combat terrorism within
the Euro-Mediterranean framework, in particular by acceding to international
conventions in the field.
3.2. Economic and financial partnership
3.2.1. Review
There has been intensive government and private
sector activity under the economic pillar of the Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership. Participation by the Mediterranean Partners has been
extremely good, regular and at a high level. In the Union's case,
ministerial participation has been more difficult achieve: the profusion
of meetings led the Euro-Mediterranean Committee to impose a limit
of seven per six-month period (two ministerial meetings and five
at expert level) from April 1996 in an effort to improve efficiency.
Priorities have not, however, been properly focused and the content
of the dialogue has proved difficult to define.
At government level, the method used to implement
the Barcelona Declaration has involved facilitating the harmonization
of sectoral policies, organizing exchanges of know-how and helping
identify the common policies required for the creation of the Euro-Mediterranean
economic-area. Six sectoral ministerial meetings were held in 1996
as well as expert meetings. Each of these meetings culminated in
some form of agreement on common sectoral policy principles. This
has been a considerable achievement in terms of economic rapprochement
and modernization, especially in the' following fields: industry
and SMEs, energy, water management, the information society, tourism,
fisheries, and sea transport. The meeting of Ministers of Tourism
emphasised the importance of strengthening cooperation in this sector
and of carrying out a series of joint actions in the future. Activities
in these fields have launched a process of significant convergence
between the Partners.
Similarly, the regional statistical cooperation
programme, MEDSTAT is aimed at consolidating the Partners' statistical
systems and harmonizing the statistics gathered by the Union and
its Partners.
In the private sector, meetings were also
organized, at the initiative of economic operators, between comparable
bodies from the various partner countries (industrial federations,
banks, chambers of commerce, economic institutes, trade fairs, etc.).
Mutual recognition, institutional capacity building and the transfer
of know-how have been facilitated in every case.
3.2.2. Strategy
The next few months should see the completion
of negotiations for the association agreements. The Partners' fundamental
'objective should then be to set up the Euro-Mediterranean economic
area, chiefly through regional operations.
All activities must be conducted with a view to
guaranteeing interaction and synergies between bilateral and regional
schemes. Care must be taken to ensure that the Partnership develops
evenly, which will in particular involve gauging its economic and
social impact on the region.
The Commission feels that the first objective
of the Conference of Foreign Affairs Ministers should be to emphasize
the will and desire of the 27 Partners to set up an area of shared
prosperity and to give firm impetus to the establishment of free
trade in order to improve living standards and reduce inequalities
by 2010.
A range of accompanying measures should be agreed
upon at regional level to permit greater harmonisation and greater
compatibility with the Union's internal market. Areas such as: cumulation
of rules of origin, customs cooperation, standards, intellectual
property, taxation and competition, should be encouraged in particular.
Training initiatives will also be encouraged.
A second objective should be the adoption
of a targeted approach to intensify the harmonization of policies
in areas crucial to the objective of setting up a joint
economic area. In the light of progress achieved to date, cooperation
will be concentrated in the first instance on areas earmarked as
priorities by the Mediterranean Partners and where cooperation has
been successful in the past: industrial policy and SMEs, energy
policy, environment and water policy, information society, sea transport.
Action will be taken in other areas in due course.
Support should be given to the establishment of
Euro-Mediterranean networks of similar economic organizations. Such
networks will enable those organizations which are interested to
develop ongoing work programmes and to make a crucial non-governmental
contribution to the establishment of an area of shared prosperity.
A third objective should consist of actively
preparing the Mediterranean Partners for the changes under way
in the Union, to enable them, as our Partners, to adjust their
economic policies accordingly, should they so wish, and to air their
views.
The economic dimension of the Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership is taking shape at a time when the European Union itself
is undergoing a further transformation with enlargement to the
east, the introduction of the Euro and the setting-up of the European
Central Bank. This transformation will have a considerable impact
on the Mediterranean Partners, as most of their trade is with the
EU and the Union also provides most of their private investment.
This preparation could take the form of meetings
and exchanges between government representatives, private operators,
university and cultural circles, etc., and would require support
from the MEDA programme. The Commission also proposes to support
those Mediterranean Partners wishing to initiate or strengthen their
trade and financial links with the countries of Central and Eastern
Europe.
A systematic effort should be made to promote
European private investment in the region, -over and above initiatives
already taken (business centres, cooperation and information networks
and conferences for small businesses, computerized networks). Action
in this area should be undertaken primarily by European and Mediterranean
private operators with the support of the MEDA Programme. Business
financing will depend on the effective use of risk capital to prime
the pump.
The introduction of modern instruments in this
area will be a major priority. The London conference on private
investment on 6 March must give renewed impetus to these activities.
The fourth objective which the Union should propose
to its Mediterranean Partners at the Conference is the implementation
of a policy to strengthen intraregional and subregional cooperation
and integration. The experience of the Regional Economic Development
Working Group (REDWG) will prove useful here. The Commission wishes
to see the Union offer support for a whole range of measures; this
would take the form of technical support for the negotiation of
intraregional economic agreements on trade-related measures and
the incentive provided by regional cumulation of rules of origin.
The strengthening of links between the Mediterranean
Partners themselves through the establishment of free trade should
be regarded as a top priority. Progress is largely contingent upon
the willingness of the Mediterranean Partners themselves but it
is essential that the European Union reaffirm the importance it
attaches to such progress. Regional and subregional economic integration
and rapprochement are the key catalysts for growth in the region,
in particular when it comes to expanding markets and attracting
private investment from abroad.
3.3. Social, cultural and human partnership
3.3.1. Review
This dimension of the Barcelona Declaration is
intended to develop human resources and to promote understanding
between different cultures and exchanges between civil societies.
.The ambitious objectives set out in the work programme
concern more than ten sectors of activity in this field. Some had
already been developed through the MED decentralized cooperation
programmes, while others are entirely new. It has proved impossible
to deal with all of the topics during the first fifteen months,
despite numerous proposals by the Partners, and joint action was
undertaken in the following areas:
- cultural heritage: a ministerial meeting
was held in April 1996 leading to the establishment of common
principles. These principles were put into effect at expert level
where agreement was reached on an initial list of 17 projects of
joint interest involving both the architectural and intellectual
heritage;
- a first meeting of high-level officials was held
in June on the subject of drugs and organized crime. A draft
agenda for a ministerial meeting was also proposed, but the parties
failed to finalize the items to be included;
- two meetings of the Economic and Social Councils
(or the bodies represented therein) have taken place, the first
in Madrid in December 1995 and the second in Paris in November 1996,
along with a meeting, in Catania, of ministers and senior officials
responsible for social affairs;
- in the field of youth, senior officials responsible
for youth work and representatives of specialized NGOs attended
a conference in Amman in June 1996 for the purpose of establishing
a coherent, decentralized operational framework for an exchange
programme for young people.
Other initiatives taken concerned the dialogue
between cultures and religions.
3.3.2. Strategy
The Commission proposes a more systematic and proactive
approach to the development of these activities. The promotion of
mutual understanding between the peoples of the region is one of
the cornerstones of the Barcelona Declaration. The events which
have unfolded in the Euro-Mediterranean region since November 1995
only serve to highlight its importance. This is why the Union should
encourage the Mediterranean Partners to deepen and intensify action
in this area..
The Commission plans to recommend six concrete
measures to the Partners at the second Ministerial Conference:
- to pursue and intensify activities in the
field of cultural heritage by adopting an initial set of regional
projects, and subsequently expanding on the range of projects covered.
Other cultural matters should also be dealt with in the context
of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and more joint cultural events
organized;
- to strengthen the dialogue between cultures,
in particular through the organization of a public conference
to review the work carried out in this area since 1995;
- to intensify the Euro-Mediterranean dialogue
on human rights, by setting up a group of eminent persons to
promote better mutual understanding in this crucial area. The work
of this group should build on existing achievements within the framework
of the Conference on Good Governance in the Euro-Mediterranean region
(March this year) and the EU's MEDA democracy programme;
- to continue the dialogue between civil societies,
which has found particular expression through the EU's decentralized
cooperation programmes and a large number of Euro-Mediterranean
conferences, notably the civil forum held in Barcelona in November
1995. A regular Euro-Mediterranean civil forum would provide a channel
for lasting dialogue between civil societies; the Union should declare
its willingness to provide technical and financial support for any
initiative taken by one or more of its Mediterranean Partners. The
continuation of the MED decentralized cooperation programmes once
the current evaluation exercise has been completed would also help
strengthen this dialogue;
- to submit as soon as possible to the ministers
responsible for youth a practical proposal for Euro-Mediterranean
cooperation embracing youth schemes (other than school
and university exchanges) and voluntary service within a decentralized
operational framework;
- to continue and step up education and training
activities, developing and strengthening cooperation under the
MEDA programme in particular, which could draw, inter alia, on
the Union's experience;
- to continue the dialogue on organized crime,
drugs and migration, for which the Partners are pressing, in
order to encourage cooperation between the responsible authorities.
The European Union should also give thought to the matter with a
view to submitting proposals, both on the issues to be dealt with
and the scope of the measures to be agreed. Issues raised by the
Partners, in particular exchanges of persons, should also be examined.
4. INSTITUTIONAL ASPECTS AND INFORMATION
The Euro-Mediterranean Committee for the Barcelona
Process, consisting of representatives of the EU Troika and of the
Mediterranean Partners, was given the task of preparing the next
meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, taking stock of and evaluating
the follow-up to the Barcelona process and all its aspects and updating
the work programme.
The Commission is prepared to continue in the role
assigned to it at Barcelona of carrying out preparatory and follow-up
work for the meetings. The Commission suggests that the Euro-Mediterranean
Committee for the Barcelona process carry out regular orientation
discussions on the activities of the Partnership and that it monitors
carefully the periodicity of the meetings and the subjects covered.
The involvement of Parliaments in the Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership remains an essential component of the project. Direct
dialogue between elected representatives will be fundamental in
helping bring peoples closer together. No moves have been made in
this direction since the Barcelona Conference and the Commission
strongly urges the European Parliament to take the initiative. Dialogue
between social partners should also be encouraged.
Finally, the success of the Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership depends on the general public's understanding of the
project. This is particularly important in the light of the misconceptions
which frequently circulate between Europe and the Mediterranean.
As far as general information is concerned, the Commission has already
launched a series of measures (monthly publication of an infommation
note for the governments of the 27 Partners, electronic information
sites, preparation of brochures in printed and electronic form,
the distribution of information packs for television and radio,
support for cultural reviews, etc.). Community financing has also
been given to help set up the Arabic service of the Euronews TV
channel due to go on the air in the spring of this year. The Commission
urges the Member States to do more to inform the public about the
Partnership and to make it more visible.
