ABSTRACT
Learning does not mean to fi ll a barrel, but to ignite a fl ame. 1 (Heraclitus, sixth century BC )
In the making of foreign policy in the Middle East, no issue has drawn as many political initiatives and as much academic attention as the Palestinian issue. Although the Palestinian problem emerged around 100 years ago, the land of Palestine, as a result of its geographic, religious and symbolic relevance, has been placed at the heart of international politics for hundreds of years. The political discourse of the confl ict has focused on many issues, including the religious, the historical, the ethnic, and the cultural. The scope and nature of the discourse of the confl ict is not solely a Palestinian-Israeli matter. Within the context of the confl ict, regional and international dimensions have a strong presence. Certainly, the Middle East, by its geographical proximity and political, economic, religious and cultural ties occupies a high position in the foreign-policy making agenda of global actors, and especially those of the region’s close neighbours such as the EU and Russia. That is, the EU and Russia are unable to not keep themselves out of the process of the evolution of the political settlement of the Middle East.
