ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with a set of political, economic and security trends which affect the implementation of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (EMP), established in November 1995 by the Barcelona Declaration. A set of new factors emerged in 1999, which may have a considerable impact on future developments. European initiatives in the Middle East have taken place in three directions. First, despite its observer status at the Madrid Middle East Peace Conference and after customary diplomatic contacts in the Middle East by the European Presidency, the European Union (EU) appointed Ambassador Miguel Angel Moratinos as a special representative to the Middle East peace process. Second, the EU supported the multilateral component of the peace process and sponsored the Regional Economic Development Working Group (REDWG), which carried the burden of integrating the Middle East economies into the global economy. Third, the EU launched the far-reaching Euro-Mediterranean Partnership Initiative, focusing on some areas of co-operation.
