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The arab revolutions and the Mediterranean Union

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  • The arab revolutions and the Mediterranean Union

    Objective - Discuss the impacts that the Arab revolutions may have on the Union of the Mediterranean

    Thoughts-
    -The arab-Israeli dilemma stilll offers the greatest barrier to a stronger mediterranean union, as well as reluctance from non-mediterranean EU members
    - but what could be the impacts of the current revolutions on this brainchild
    - Would stronger democratic processes in Tunisia, Algerian and Egypt increase the likelyhood of a successful and influential union being created
    - Could such a union play a role in ensuring that such countries implement successful, long lasting democratic processes
    - could this new unity in the Mediterranean, with closer diplomatic and economic ties, based on co-operation, counter-balance anti israeli and western governments that we fear could be elected in the future Egypt et al-
    - such a union provides an opportunity to unite islamic and western states under the banner of democracy, potentially made possible by currents events
    -Can such a supranational organisation be created or is it naive and is the real reality that the differences between states are too serious to allow the creation and development over time of an institution that in the long run could tie the faith of these countries together?

    It seems to me that such a union has a lot to offer, the creation of a Med union, which has a greater role to play than at present has still too many barriers to overcome, but the spread of democracy in Northern Africa could be one small step towards such a day, and the removal of one of the barriers that currently prevents a meaningful Med union from being created.

    here is the wikipedia page on the union as of now
    Union for the Mediterranean - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

  • #2
    Originally posted by tantalus View Post
    Objective - Discuss the impacts that the Arab revolutions may have on the Union of the Mediterranean

    Thoughts-
    -The arab-Israeli dilemma stilll offers the greatest barrier to a stronger mediterranean union, as well as reluctance from non-mediterranean EU members
    - but what could be the impacts of the current revolutions on this brainchild
    - Would stronger democratic processes in Tunisia, Algerian and Egypt increase the likelyhood of a successful and influential union being created
    - Could such a union play a role in ensuring that such countries implement successful, long lasting democratic processes
    - could this new unity in the Mediterranean, with closer diplomatic and economic ties, based on co-operation, counter-balance anti israeli and western governments that we fear could be elected in the future Egypt et al-
    - such a union provides an opportunity to unite islamic and western states under the banner of democracy, potentially made possible by currents events
    -Can such a supranational organisation be created or is it naive and is the real reality that the differences between states are too serious to allow the creation and development over time of an institution that in the long run could tie the faith of these countries together?

    It seems to me that such a union has a lot to offer, the creation of a Med union, which has a greater role to play than at present has still too many barriers to overcome, but the spread of democracy in Northern Africa could be one small step towards such a day, and the removal of one of the barriers that currently prevents a meaningful Med union from being created.

    here is the wikipedia page on the union as of now
    Union for the Mediterranean - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
    The Union of the Mediterranean has no significance.
    Last edited by denizkuvetleri; 01 Feb 11,, 13:00.

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    • #3
      The Union of the Mediterranean has no significance
      not currently, but it could some day, and I imagine it would have greater potential if all the members were democracies

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      • #4
        I've heard this talk mainly from French academics.Some dreams of a renewed Roman Empire

        What you need to see is that the term democracy in practice has different meanings(some differences are slight, some aren't)to different peoples.Democracy in Ireland is not the same as democracy in Albania.
        Those who know don't speak
        He said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. Luke 22:36

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        • #5
          I've heard this talk mainly from French academics.Some dreams of a renewed Roman Empire

          What you need to see is that the term democracy in practice has different meanings(some differences are slight, some aren't)to different peoples.Democracy in Ireland is not the same as democracy in Albania
          .

          yes but this is what the thread is for, not just to explore where the idea came from, but to explore what it could be, if anything?, what form it could take, what functions and impacts it could have.

          I set up the thread, because if one was to go about creating a meaningful Med union, I expect that if democracy in some form exists in several states rather than dictatorships that this would have an impact on a potential union and its format.

          Democracy in Ireland is not the same as democracy in Albania
          yes but thats the whole premise of the thread, that differences in government structure will have an effect, in this case on the role and format of a potential meaningful Med Union, the op already acknowledges the potential for these differences to have differing impacts, the idea is to explore the detail.

          Overall I think supranationalism has alot to offer and can peform specific roles, it can bring greater prosperity and increase stability in a region.

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