The EU’s Southern Neighbourhood [What Think Tanks are thinking]

Written by Marcin Grajewski

The European Union’s relations with Mediterranean countries form part of a broader European Neighbourhood Policy. This creates a framework for bilateral and regional cooperation with Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria and Tunisia.

A key element, agreed in 2011 following the ‘Arab Spring’ uprisings in the region, is the ‘more for more’ approach, which envisages closer relations in terms of financial assistance, travel and trade for those countries which pursue democratic and economic reforms. According to many analysts, the effectiveness of the policy has been challenged by political instability in many countries of the region and the growth of illegal migration to Europe.

This ‘At a glance’ note highlights a selection of recent studies by major international think tanks on the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood Policy, with papers on migration grouped as a separate category.

Studies and analyses

Tunisia’s transformation – Cooperating with the neighbours: Europe, North Africa and the GCC
Bertelsmann Stiftung, July 2015

The return of Egypt: Internal challenges and regional game
Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionale, July 2015

EU Naval Force EUNAVFOR MED sets sail in troubled waters
Centre for European Policy Studies, June 2015

Europe’s neighbourhood: Crisis as the new normal
European Council on Foreign Relations, June 2015

Reviewing the European Neighbourhood Policy
European Institute of the Mediterranean, June 2015

Enhancing the Prospects of the EU’s Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas in the Mediterranean: Lessons from the Eastern Partnership
Centre for European Policy Studies, June 2015

Les enjeux du chaos libyen
Institut français des relations internationales, June 2015

Building sustainable agriculture for food security in the Euro-Mediterranean Area
Instituto Affari Internazionali, June 2015

Neighbourhood policy: More or no more?
Notre Europe – Jacques Delors Institute, May 2015

The new European neighbourhood policies require a differentiated and politically driven approach
Fondation Robert Schuman, May 2015

20 Years of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership
Carnegie Europe, May 2015

A multilateral approach to ungoverned spaces: Libya and beyond
Instituto Affari Internazionali, May 2015

Europe’s volatile southern neighbourhood
Clingendael, April 2015

The EU neighbourhood in shambles – Some recommendations for a new European neighbourhood strategy
Bertelsmann Stiftung, April 2015

The United States and the future of Mediterranean security: Reflections from GMF’s Mediterranean Strategy Group
German Marshall Fund of the United States, April 2015

Forced convergence? Transatlantic strategy in the global Mediterranean
German Marshall Fund of the United States, April 2015

Gas discoveries in the Eastern Mediterranean: Implications for regional maritime security
German Marshall Fund of the United States, March 2015

What to do about Libya: Intervention or mediation?
Instituto Affari Internazionali, March 2015

Tunisia: The EU must put its money where its mouth is
Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, March 2015

From Morsi to Al-Sisi: Foreign policy at the service of domestic policy
Instituto Affari Internazionali, March 2015

A bridge over the Mediterranean: The French-Egyptian arms deal
Institute for National Security Studies, March 2015

From policies to politics: The European Union as an international mediator in the Mediterranean
European Institute of the Mediterranean, February 2015

Re-thinking the EU’s development paradigm: Views from Morocco and Tunisia
European Policy Centre (EPC), January 2015

Research and assessment on Euro-Mediterranean relations
European Institute of the Mediterranean, January 2015

Financial reforms in the Mediterranean: Ideas and policies to inspire change
European Institute of the Mediterranean, January 2015

Conflicting role conceptions: In search of the European Union’s added value for its Southern Neighbours
College of Europe, December 2014

Saving Libya from itself: What the EU should do now
Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), December 2014

Not the European Neighbourhood Policy: Some iconoclastic tips to start rethinking the EU’s relations with its neighbours
European Policy Centre (EPC), December 2014

The neighbourhood policy is dead. What’s next for European foreign policy along its arc of instability?
Instituto Affari Internazionali, November 2014

Migration issues

Tragedies in the Mediterranean: Analysing the causes and addressing the solutions from the roots to the boats
Barcelona Centre for International Affairs, July 2015

Fear of migration: Is the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood Policy fading away?
Finish Institute of International Affairs, June 2015

The EU and the migrant crisis: Not much more than a point defense
Heinrich Boll Stiftung, June 2015

Drowning boat people and the nervous breakdown of EU politics
Carnegie Europe, June 2015

Les drames de la Méditerranée : entre compassion, xénophobie et politique de l’autruche
Institut des relations internationales et stratégiques, April 2015

Emergenza Mediterraneo e migrazioni: come può rispondere l’Europa?
Istituto per gli Studi di Politica Internazionali, 20 April 2015

European Union and the geopolitics of migration
Swedish Institute of International Afairs, February, 2015

EU policies on mixed migration flows in the Mediterranean sea
European Union Centre in Singapore, Feb. 2015

Three challenges for tomorrow’s EU migration policy: Fairness, mobility and narratives
Egmont, January 2015

The crisis in North Africa: Implications for Europe and options for EU policymakers
Clingendael, April 2015