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Arab League–European Union relations

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Arab League–European Union relations
Map indicating locations of Arab League and European Union

Arab League
European Union

Arab League and European Union relations matured during the EU's evolution into a more political project than one focused on economic outcomes.

Meeting of the European Union and Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo (2012)

Organizational relations started in 2007, when the Arab League adopted a policy of reaching out to other regional organizations and significant economic partners, particularly the EU, ASEAN, China, India, Japan and South America.

History

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Although the Arab League was created decades before the creation of the European Union, the bloc has played an important role in its formation and development. The League's conception, which was initially supported by the United Kingdom, aimed to increase nationalist sentiment in the Middle East against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The European states then suffered from what was called the independent movements that raged the Arab world. This occurred especially in French Colonized Algeria, Syria, Lebanon and Morocco, and British Colonized Iraq, Egypt, Palestine and the Kingdom of Trans-Jordan. Pan-Arabism became most widespread under Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser during the Suez Canal Crisis. After Nasser's death, tensions between the European Union and the Arab League eased. In 1973, Arab-European relations focused on the exchange of petroleum products for political support.[1]

At the 19th summit of the Arab League, Javier Solana attended. He gave the EU's full support to the Arab League's Peace Initiative of 2002.[2] At the summit, he addressed the Arab Leaders: "Once again we find ourselves together, the European Union and the Arab League, once again we have an opportunity to re-affirm our joint commitment to the values of civilisation that we share, more than ever Europeans and Arabs have to face common challenges, I am confident that we will find new ways to improve our cooperation."[3]

Malta Communique

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European Commission – League of Arab States Liaison Office in Floriana, Malta.

In 2008, an Arab League-EU Summit was held in Malta, in the presence of 49 foreign ministers and representatives from 49 countries, 27 European states, and 22 Arab states. The summit concluded with a final resolution, known as the Malta Communique, which discussed mostly political issues in the Middle East, including tensions in Iraq, Lebanon, and the Gaza Strip. The summit was the result of the "Malta Initiative", launched in 2005 by Maltese Minister of Foreign Affairs Michael Frendo to bring together the European Union and the League of Arab States at Foreign Minister level for the first time. This summit, often referred to as "Malta I", was followed by "Malta II" held in Cairo, Egypt, which gathered foreign ministers from both the European Union and the Arab League and resulted in the issue of the Cairo Declaration on 13 November 2012.[4][5]

Comparison of the EU and the Arab League

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Arab League European Union
Flag
Headquarters Cairo Brussels
Type Regional organization Continental union, confederation (de facto)
Members 22 members 27 members
Current Leaders Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit
Parliament Speaker Ali Al-Daqbaashi 		President of the European Council Charles Michel
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyon
Official languages Arabic 24 languages

References

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  1. ^ "The World Summit on the Information Society: Can the Digital divide be Bridged? [Introduction]". Archived from the original on 21 August 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2010.
  2. ^ "EU takes initiative on Saudi peace plan". The Guardian. London.
  3. ^ "Summary of remarks by Javier SOLANA, EU High Representative for CFSP, at the 19th Arab League Summit. Riyadh, 28 March 2007" (PDF). Council of the European Union. Retrieved 30 October 2007.
  4. ^ "THE BARCELONA PROCESS AND EURO-ARAB ECONOMIC RELATIONS:1995–2005". 15 January 2010. Archived from the original on 15 January 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Global Action Program: Arab And European Dialogue". 14 January 2010. Archived from the original on 14 January 2010. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
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