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Europe's ties to Mediterranean remain difficult

"We must fight against terrorism. But you have to make a difference between the combat against terrorism and the right of people to resist foreign occupation."

Abdelaziz Belkhadem, Algeria's minister of state for foreign affairs

EU governments looking for stronger bonds with their southern neighbors face a grim challenge -- keeping Euro-Mediterranean links on track despite continuing political turmoil and violence in the Middle East.

Europe's uphill and mostly unsuccessful struggle to keep Arab-Israeli discord from infecting the 35-nation Euro-Med partnership was in full display at a summit of EU, North African and Middle East leaders which ended in Barcelona on Monday.

Hailed as a celebration of 10 years of Euro-Med ties, the two-day meeting faltered on Middle East issues, forcing delegates to hammer out watered-down compromises and fudged statements.

The summit got off to an awkward start as eight Middle East leaders decided to stay home because of domestic or regional troubles. The list of absentees included Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Jordan's King Abdullah.

All the no-shows insisted they had pressing domestic problems which prevented them from attending the summit. But Arab diplomats admitted in private that at least some of the region's top leaders were staying away to avoid being lectured to by Europeans on reform and human rights.

Troubled Middle East politics also prevented the meeting from issuing a so-called "common vision" on future ties. Plans to adopt the ambitious joint blueprint for building peace and stability in the Middle East were scuppered after Israelis and Arabs disagreed on the definition of the Jewish state's borders.

Instead of a joint final document, the summit produced a vaguer "vision of two states, a safe and secure Israel and a viable, sovereign, contiguous, democratic Palestine, living side by side in peace and security."

In what British Prime Ministers Tony Blair and other EU leaders described as a breakthrough, the summit succeeded in adopting a first-ever Euro-Med code of conduct on combatting global terrorism.

But the deal was watered down significantly to remove any references to current Israeli-Palestinian violence.

Arab representatives at the gathering said they could not sign a counter-terror code which made no distinction between terrorism and peoples' right to fight against foreign occupation.

"We must fight against terrorism. But you have to make a difference between the combat against terrorism and the right of people to resist foreign occupation," Algeria's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Abdelaziz Belkhadem told reporters.

Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk al-Shaara told the meeting that success in confronting terrorism on regional or international level was "contingent upon addressing its root causes" including ending Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.

However, Blair, who chaired the summit as Britain currently holds the EU presidency, hailed the anti-terror code as an "important moment" in Euro-Med relations.

While defining terrorism remained a problem, Blair insisted that a new "spirit" to fight extremist violence was emerging across the Arab and Muslim world.

All Euro-Med countries agreed that killing civilians did not help achieve political goals, he said, adding: "The code has been agreed by every country."

While Euro-Med meetings could not resolve differences between Arabs and Israelis, they could produce "practical results," Blair insisted.

Blair and other EU leaders said they were especially pleased the summit had reached agreement on a five-year work program to promote democracy, human rights and economic reform in the Middle East.

The blueprint, marking a new EU assertiveness in pressing for political change in Arab nations, commits the region's governments to extend political pluralism, promote gender equality and ensure freedom of expression and association.

Participants agreed to foster the role of civil society "in accordance with national legislation" and to focus on education and the creation of jobs.

There was also agreement on building a Euro-Med free-trade area by 2010 and on enhanced joint actions to fight illegal immigration.

The EU promised that countries which chose the reform path would be rewarded with more aid through a so-called "governance facility" to be set up next year.

EU diplomats said the hard-won compromises in Barcelona represented a "mixed bag" of results. But significantly, Arab leaders made no formal comment to the press and did not attend a joint press conference with the EU's top brass, including Blair.

Euro-Med partners include the 25 EU states as well as Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Lebanon, Turkey and Syria.
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