EuroMeSCo Report 1998/2000

During the two-year period that started in April 1998, the EuroMeSCo network continued to investigate different aspects of the political and security issues in the Mediterranean area. This research was carried out by two permanent working groups and several ad-hoc groups. One of the permanent working groups was delegated the task of considering political and security obstacles to co-operation and sub-regional integration in the Mediterranean, while the second focused on the decision-making mechanisms in the Charter and the instruments by which it could pursue the implementation of an "area of peace and stability" as defined by the EuroMediterranean Partnership (EMP). Research conducted by the ad-hoc groups focused on separate but related issues. These included landmines, the international implications of domestic security, complementarity between the EMP and the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP), visas, defence agreements in the EuroMediterranean area, and political determinants of development. Network members were directly involved in the organisation of the fifteen meetings where the results of this research activity were discussed. These meetings took place in eleven different EMP countries: Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Tunisia, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. Each of the working groups and the ad-hoc projects generated a report detailing the main findings. These reports have provided the material for this joint report presented for discussion at the Ramallah annual conference, in January 2000. A full list of the contributions to all working groups reports is given at the end of this document.