ABSTRACT
Nationalism outside of the continent of Europe has increasingly become a significant factor in security equations for the nations of the West. Ethnic strife in various regions around the globe can impact the specific national interests of EU states or have wide ramifications for Europe as a whole. This is especially true of Europe’s southern flank. This chapter examines Europe's interests in the region, and the potential threats to European interests posed by national and subnational forces in the Mediterranean basin, the Persian Gulf, and the broader region of the Middle East. In general the West European states have been able to maintain sound economic and political relations with most of the Arab world. Libya's sponsorship of terrorism, its aggressive armament program and its adventurism in Chad, also make it a source of deep concern for European, and especially French, policy makers. The European states are particularly concerned with the acquisition of weapons of mass destruction in the region.
