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CIAO DATE: 12/01
Volume XXXVI No. 1 (January-March 2001)
Opinions
Although Arab governments have embraced the Euro-Med Partnership, convinced that it will enhance their security, progress in the Barcelona process has been slow. The problem is that Arab Mediterranean countries are torn between opening up to globalisation, something they feel is essential in order not be marginalised, and maintaining the status quo for fear that openness will lead to a loss of control. Future foreign policy choices in the Mediterranean – North African region will depend upon the extent to which these countries can increase their capacity to handle the complexities of the current world system.
TEPSA Europe Forum
The failings of intergovernmentalism were evident in Nice, which again left a number of "left-overs", like Amsterdam before it. Laeken has its chores set out for it if it is to prepare the ground properly for the IGC in 2004. In addition to rectifying the perversities of Nice, the post-Nice agenda will have to aim at entrenching the Community orthodoxy within a European constitution and developing new sources of legitimacy.
While the feasibility and desirability of turning the Charter of Fundamental Rights into a chapter of a constitutional treaty, dividing the competencies of member states from those of the EU and introducing new innovations into the institutional balance and the decision-making process are not proven, the main effect of a "European constitution" might simply be a greater degree of formalisation and clarification of the constitutional principles characterising the EU today.
In light of future enlargement, reform of the community legal order is essential for making management of European affairs more flexible, transparent and responsible. Offering citizens a catalogue of their basic rights, the Charter of Fundamental Rights is a major part of this reform. Besides its legal value, the Charter is important as a political document and as an ID card for the European Union with respect to its citizens, third countries and the countries seeking to enter it.
The "institutional triangle" remains vital for the process of integration, but the institutions that compose it will have to undergo a dual process of reform: reform of their internal functioning and reform of their interaction within the triangle. There are various ways in which the system can be made to work, even in an enlarged Union, and they do not necessarily conflict with one another. But the basic arrangement has to be maintained and developed, rather than replaced with methods and solutions that do not ensure the continuation of the integration process.
By the year 2004, the European Union should have 19 members, yet substantially unchanged rules for functioning. This article discusses the scenarios for European integration for the coming years —after the disappointing results of the Intergovernmental Conference — and in what direction the European Union can go.
Essays
Italian foreign policy survey
To do its part in the European Security and Defence Policy, Italy will have to make a quantitative and qualitative contribution with an adequate set of forces, but above all, with the necessary political and financial commitments
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Although NATO's new Strategic Concept specifically intends to go beyond the general prohibition on the use of force, the international order has no instruments with which to sanction a document which does not express an obligation to behave. Nevertheless, as this kind of document acts mainly upon the legal conscience of the international community, its effects may be more pervasive than any single action.
The Balkan missions highlighted the need for a fundamental, capability-oriented reform of the Bundeswehr, with a significant impact on force levels, structures and equipment. The new Bundeswehr will be smaller, yet - with regard to crisis management and peace support operations - clearly more capable. Its employment forces will be nearly tripled, command structures reorganised, and equipment modernised with emphasis on improving key capabilities such as strategic transport, strategic reconnaissance and command and control. The new Bundeswehr will be more sustainable and interoperable and tailored particularly well for multinational operations with NATO and EU partners.
NATO's new approach to the Mediterranean has become an important part of the reform and adaptation process within the Alliance, offering considerable potential for dialogue and cooperation on security affairs. With its pragmatic and flexible approach, adapted to the political situation in the area, the Mediterranean Dialogue provides specific "value added" that cannot be found in any other regional initiative.
Book Reviews and Notes