EU enlagement: Sarkozy’s Mediterranean Union

French President Nicolas Sarkozy will probably see the birth of the Mediterranean Union, his pre-election brainchild.
At a meeting with Sarkozy in Hannover on March 3 German Chancellor Angela Merkel has finally agreed to the union’s formation.

However, the alliance that Europe will try on is very different from what the energetic and ambitious French president suggested initially. Moreover, nobody can say how many countries will join the union and whether it will be viable at all.

He first brought this idea up during the presidential campaign last year. It was central to his foreign policy program. In a nutshell, Sarkozy proposed a regional political and economic alliance of Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Palestine, Portugal, Spain, Syria, Tunisia, and Turkey. It would be governed by a council, have rotating presidency, and conduct regular summits. Its goal would be to promote cooperation in settling regional issues such as immigration, develop economic contacts and trade, and counter terrorism. The proposed union is supposed to bridge Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

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