Bound to Cooperate - Europe and the Middle East
 |
Sven Behrendt, Christian Hanelt (eds.): Bound to Cooperate - Europe
and the Middle East, Gütersloh 2000, |
At the turn of the century, Europe and the Middle East look like an odd couple. Their common historical experiences, geographical proximity, and economic interdependencies would deem it essential to develop closer political and economic relations. Yet, the two regions have rarely developed institutionalized forms of interaction on which more intensive relations could be based. The reasons for this are manifold: colonial history, nationalism, regionalism, and identity being only some of them. However, will the two regions be able to intensify their relations in the wake of the global transformation taking place? Will they be even ready to develop some modest forms of integration in order to be better equipped to meet the challenges of globalisation?
Developing a broad strategic vision for cross-regional interaction is one thing, identifying solutions for contemporary political and economic problems quite another. The Middle East peace process has yet to achieve broad Arab-Israeli reconciliation. Economic interaction is still limited, or at least one-sided. Comparatively few European companies enter the markets of the Middle East. Only a friction of European exports are bound to go to this region. Political systems on the state as well as regional levels differ substantially as do political value systems. Migration causes fears and suspicions, but not intercultural curiosity. The list of obstacles to intensify cross-regional affairs could be lengthened in extenso; however, on the one hand one has to identify them, but on the other one has to develop workable options to solving them.
For that reason, the Bertelsmann Foundation and the Bertelsmann Group on Policy Research at the Center for Applied Policy Research of the University of Munich initiated the project 'Europe and the Middle East' in 1994. Since then the project has pursued several strategic objectives. It has developed options and strategies for strengthening Euro-Middle Eastern political, economic, and social relations. It has sought to overcome the structural communication and information deficits among as well as within the two regions and tried to serve as a political ice breaker where formal diplomacy failed. It has sought to bridge the gap between the world of academic knowledge development and the world of decision making in politics and business. The project therefore has developed options and strategies of regional and cross-regional cooperation on the basis of sound academic analysis with the support of an international network of political scientists and economists. This volume reproduces their insight in the form of a collection of selected papers produced for the project.
Contents
Preface
Introduction (Sven Behrendt)
Security Relations
From Geo-Politics to Geo-Economics: Collective Security in the Middle
East and North Africa
(Abdel Monem Said Aly)
An Inter-Regional Analysis: NATO´s New Strategic Concept and the Theory
of Security Complexes
(Ole Wæver, Barry Buzan)
Barcelona's First Pillar: An Appropriate Concept for Security Relations?
(Rosemary Hollis)
The Middle East Peace Process
Searching for a Sustainable Peace Settlement Between Israel and its Neighbours
(Eberhard Rhein)
Europe and the Arab-Israeli Peace Process: The Declaration of the European
Council of Berlin and Beyond (Joel Peters)
Reconsidering the Economic Benefits of a Stable Middle East (Riad al-Khouri)
The Political Role of the EU in the Middle East: Israeli Aspirations (Joseph
Alpher)
Foreign Policy Making and Strategies
Institutional Constraints of the European Union's Middle Eastern and
North African Policy (Jörg Monar)
The Critical Dialogue Reconsidered (Trevor Taylor)
US Policy of Sanctions: Prospects for Revision
(Phebe Marr)
Europe, the US and Iran (Anoushiravan Ehteshami)
Transformation and Legitimacy
Legitimacy and Economic Reform in the Arab World (Emma Murphy)
Political Consciousness and the Crisis of Political Liberalisation in
the Arab World (Walid Kazziha)
Power Sharing and Elections in the Middle East and North Africa (Anoushshiravan
Ehteshami)