Before continuing further, it is important to gain an understanding of how democracy is perceived by the ordinary people of the middle east. The reasons of arab spring arab spring was triggered by economic hardships and peoples democratic aspirations stepan and linz, 20. The 2015 nobel peace prize was awarded to the national dia. Some 18 months following the start of the arab spring, there is still. Candidate in near eastern studies at princeton university and an associate scholar at fpri. Europe and the arab revolutions from a weak to a proactive response to a changing neighborhood sally khalifa isaac abstract this research paper attempts to assess european responses to the arab uprisings and, in particular, the introduced change in the eu policy towards its southern neighborhood. The eus response to the arab spring since the first demonstrations in tunisia in december 2010, a wave of popular discontent has shaken the arab world, with people calling for dignity, democracy, and social justice.
Except where otherwise noted content on this site is licensed under a creative commons 2. The common slogan of the protesters throughout arab spring was the people want to bring down the regime aissa, 2012. The past year has witnessed a wave of popular uprisings across north africa and the middle east which the western media dubbed the arab spring. Press release european union website, the official eu. This concept is used as an indication to a wide range of uprisings in the middle east and north africa mena region during the past two years. If you are unable to download the information you require, please request. Many analysts believe that the recent events in the middle east north africa popularly referred to as the arab spring is a test for the future of euro mediterranean relations. Arab spring, european union, european neighborhood policy, migration. Disturbances have ranged from protests to full civil war and.
Arab spring used their powers vehemently to crush the demonstrators and consequently the peaceful protesters also became violent. The euromed region after the arab spring and the new generation. Mass surveillance of personal data by eu member states and its compatibility with eu law. Events do appear to validate the idea underpinning the european security strategy ess and the european neighborhood policy enp.
Key exports include textiles and clothing, food products, petroleum products, chemicals, and phosphates. Tunisia and the arab spring overview students begin this lesson by discussing the concept of freedom and the attributes of countries that embrace or deny freedom. Combining literature on arab public opinion and perceptions of the eu, we argue that arab citizens feelings about the eu are influenced most prominently by their desire for sovereignty. Between spectatorship and actorness the eu and the arab spring. Causes of the arab spring causes of the arab spring may be described as following.
Relations between the gulf countries and the european union have been tested by the events of the arab spring. Europe and the arab spring 75 as joint action by the eu and shared positions among its members are concerned, the eu has not made a good start. Indeed it is possible to observe that some common positions, and supernational entities such as nato and the european union which have been heavily involved in the recent. Europes toolbox where the consolidation of democratic initiatives, economic development.
Policy department, directorate general for external policies. To a throughout the first seven months of the arab spring. Common foreign and security policy and neighbourhood policy. Democracy, as a secular entity, is unlikely t be favorably received by the vast majority of middle easterners who are devout followers of the islamic faith. Against the background of the eus unwillingness to continue membership negotiations after 2005, the arab spring provided turkey with an opportunity to reaffirm its newlyfound democratic identity and to become the leading advocate of democracy across the middle east.
This article addresses the question of how the eu exercises power in international politics and, in particular, whether or not there is anything distinctive about the ways in which it does so. While interconnected, uprisings in each nation took different forms and reached. Causes include human rights violations, economic decline, as well as extreme poverty caused by unemployment. The political and geographical scope of the socalled. Euromediterranean relations and the arab spring archive of. The arab spring and the eus democracy promotion in.
More than two years have passed since the dawn of the arab spring, starting with the popular uprisings in tunisia and egypt. The democratic uprisings in north africa and the middle east have created a major political challenge for the european union eu and its recently created external action service. Within this context, students will then learn about the arab spring through a powerpoint centered discussion, political cartoons, and a. The west is in reality, only an abstract mental construction, a nonexistent geopolitical entity. The arab spring jason marshall introduction the arab spring is a blanket term to cover a multitude of uprisings and protests in the middle east that began in the winter of 2010 and continue today. Abstractirrespective of their final outcome, the arab uprisings have changed the region profoundly with important consequences for external actors as well. The eu and the arab spring international studies association. Through dcftas, the eu is now pushing to extend and consolidate its preferential trade relations with these. Promoting democracy and human rights in the middle east, edited by joel peters, analyzes the response of the european union to recent uprisings in the middle east.
In a postarab spring world, it will be difficult for qatar to resume its pre2011 mediation or postconflict reconstruction activities without facing intense levels of scrutiny. Despite the unexpected magnitude of these uprisings, the eu has been quick to. The joint parliamentary assemblys draft resolution condemns the violence in syria and egypt and voices. The situation in practically the whole of the arab world remains highly fluid yet important differences have emerged among and. Some eu member states were skeptical toward turkeys membership, in part. Internal divergences among member states, as well as the strategicrealist goals of the eu in both lebanon and the middle east more.
The arab spring is a regional populist revolution that has changed political dynamics throughout the middle east and north africa mena. Options international studies association isa 53rd annual meeting 14 april 2012, san diego, ca, united states niklas bremberg dept. The tumultuous events that have been taken place in the. Development of conflict in arab spring libya and syria. A bumpy road ahead pdf by hassan hakimian, director of the london middle east institute and reader, economics department, soas underscores the underlying importance of the economic conditions facing the new republics, such as egypt and tunisia, which are emerging as a result of the arab spring. It began in 2010 and still continues in one form or another, whether in continued violent conflict or continual regime change due to an uncertain citizenry.
The arab spring is, therefore, a serious test for the eus. Taking a relational approach to power, where the focus is on practical knowledge and perceptions of self and other, the paper departs from the assumption that such a question has to be evaluated in. It was the first south mediterranean country to sign an association agreement in 1998 and an action plan in 2005. Ahmed was the leader of the april 6 youth movement that organized the egyptian revolution against the then president hosni mubarak, six years ago this month.
Pdf the arab spring and its influence on european union policy. Its origins, evolution and consequences four years on. Analysis of the arab spring 3 blunders in state response, in particular using a heavyhanded approach and trying to crush opposition, had the reverse effect of galvanising more people to join the protests icg, 2011b and 2011d. In response to the arab spring, the eu is launching negotiations for deep and. How can the eu effectively support tunisia and egypt.
The eu and lebanon in the wake of the arab uprisings. Turkeys role in the arab spring and the syrian conflict tpq. Between the arab spring and the gulf cooperation council by samuel helfont and tally helfont samuel helfont is a ph. The dispute over the muslim brotherhood highlighted the gulf states sharply different approaches toward the arab spring. Tunisia has been a key partnerof the european union eu since the very beginning of the euro mediterranean partnership, launched in 1995 under the barcelona process. The uprisings have exposed the problems affecting these polices.
Despite historic links to violent activity, europe always remained reluctant to place the lebanese militant group on its list of terrorist organisations. The eu and the arab spring unc center for european studies. Democratisation after the arab spring osterreichische gesellschaft. A critical analysis oftheeus response to the arab spring. This background paper begins with a reflection on euro mediterranean relations from the 1970s to the launch of the union for the mediterranean initiative in 2008. The arab spring has provided a unique opportunity to revise the european unions. The european union eu has traditionally taken a rather nuanced view of the activities of hezbollah. In the past four years, it adopted a new constitution and held free and fair elections. Eu, migration policy, arab spring, southern mediterranean, eusouthern mediterranean relations, mobility, global approach to migration and mobility, gamm 4. Eumena relations from the barcelona process to the arab. The arab spring uprisings of 2011 triggered a wide set of social movements and regime change across the middle east and north africa. Tangled connections between migration and security in the. Hopes for change and challenges to the eu foreign and security policy was the fourth research project that the centre for european and international studies ceis undertook together with the friedrih ebert foundation and kristian vigenin, mep. Morocco, tunisia and the european union s mobility partnership on migration, in eui working papers rscas, no.
Since 1995, the european union has been extremely active in the middle east and north africa with a number of policies put in place to achieve often contrasting objectives. My friend ahmed maher was released from prison on january 5. European commission press releases press release eu. The eu trade and investment agenda transnational institute. Roots and causes of the arab uprisings there is a consensu s among politica l analysts regardin g the cocktai l of major factors that, when combined, created the socia l explosio n known as the 2011 arab uprisings. Now he is out on a probation of three years, and will have to spend the hours between 6 p. Arab spring is a political concept that spread widely in the media and academic art publications. The eu has not been perceived as reacting very rapidly or effectively to the socalled arab spring. Instead, a new arab political identity with an antidespotic, pluralis t and democracyseekin g approach is dawning. The eu s response to the arab spring since the first demonstrations in tunisia in december 2010, a wave of popular discontent has shaken the arab world, with people calling for dignity, democracy, and social justice. A critical analysis oftheeus response to the arab spring and its implications for eu security abstract this paper aims atcritically analyzing the europeanunion eus response to the socalled arab spring, focusing on the security dimension.
The reasons and economic and political consequences of. The arab spring and the subsequent wars in the region temporarily weakened ruling regimes egypt or led to the collapse of regional powers syria, libya, while the rise of daesh or the socalled islamic state of iraq and syria isis put the. Arab spring is significant, but we focus our attention mainly on four representative countries of the region. This briefing explores why the arab spring is so important to the eu and how it has responded. European commission press release details page european commission memo brussels, 08 february 20 introduction. Will the new global approach to migration and mobility.
973 812 841 1033 1152 1098 922 932 1249 995 913 1348 249 614 475 1470 281 1598 1388 374 1567 1 1037 184 284 101 1373 323 548 369