Paper Titles & Abstracts

The Arab spring led to profound geopolitical changes in the Middle East. The EU rightfully made the deepening of Arab reform a key objective, but it still lacks a clear geostrategic vision for the region. As part of an 'EU grand strategy', the reflection on the EU's long term objectives and regional interests is central to determine how it can contribute to transition processes, conflict resolution and crisis management through its various instruments. Given the considerable political uncertainty and the mere scope of the challenges, strategic thinking is crucial to move beyond a reactive foreign policy approach and to identify where change in the region can advance European interests. Starting form an overview of broader EU interests in the region, this paper focuses on how the new reality in the Middle East impacts on the EU's role in three traditional priority areas that remain of acute relevance: the Arab-Israeli conflict, EU policy towards Lebanon and its engagement with Iran. Specifically, it looks at the EU's strategic role in the altered geopolitical context; natural regional partners to work with; and the type of (operational) challenges the EU will encounter.