BRUSSELS FOCUS EU-Office Brussels 38, rue du Tacitume B-1000 Brussels Tel: 00 32 22 34 62 80 Fax: 00 32 22 34 62 81 fes@fes-europe.eu www.fes-europe.eu “Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean” Readjusting the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership April 2008 Coming together in Brussels for the European Council spring meeting, the heads of state and government agreed on 13 March on the French-German proposal of establishing a Mediterranean union, giving it the slightly cumbersome name“Barcelona Process: Union for the Mediterranean“(UMed). It was then passed to the Commission, which is now responsible for working out a concrete institutional framework for the initia­tive. Following the Council decision, FES Brussels convened experts from the institutions and the southern partner countries as well as independent consultants, political advisors and academics for a one-day workshop on the topic“Union for the Mediterranean as‘Barcelona+’? Tasks and perspectives of the UMed partnership” in April. This paper builds upon the debates from the workshop. The French-German paper shall be referred to briefly at the outset, followed by an evaluation of the Barcelona Process. Special attention is then paid to southern perspectives on the partnership, before two models of regional cooperation with regard to the UMed are discussed. 1. French-German paper and Council decision The Council agreement of 13 March was based on a two-page working paper that was jointly pre­sented by the French and the Germans. This pro­posal put an end to week-long huffs, and even open dissent. The compromise solution was to acknowledge the French desire to form a Union for the Mediterranean, while at the same time ensur­ing that the non-Mediterranean EU members will also fully participate in the initiative. Concerns especially among the northern and eastern EU countries that such a Union could entail a split within the EU were thus dispelled. However, no clear definition of the project was given. The French-German paper makes explicit reference to the Barcelona Process launched in 1995. The initially high ambitions of the French to start from scratch with the creation of a Mediterranean Union were watered down to an initiative which gives the Barcelona Process a new impetus. The UMed shall be copresided by an EU member and a partner country from the south, which would be responsible for preparing the biennial summits. A 20-staff secretariat, headed jointly by a director from a non-EU member state and one appointed by the Council of the EU, will assist the presidency in its tasks. According to the paper, the exact role of the secretariat“remains to be de­fined.” Further on however, it is stated that the directors should participate in the meetings of the Euro-Med Partnership and should serve as‘source of inspiration’ in the definition of new projects. Financing of the projects, the probably most deli­cate question, shall be ensured through the exist­ing Barcelona funds as well as through private third-party funding. A launching event, convening EU-27 and the non-EU Mediterranean partner countries, is scheduled to take place in Paris on 13 July. 2. Barcelona – A failed experiment? The wish to replace an established project by a new one usually hints at an erroneous design of the original initiative. Indeed, French President Sarkozy was quick in burying the Barcelona Proc-