The European union and North Africa: Keeping the Mediterranean ‘safe’ for Europe

Is the comprehensive answer to the Maghreb ‐ as institutionalized by the EU in Barcelona ‐ an adequate solution to the real and perceived security problems these countries pose for Europe? Given that the EU has been much more impressed by the supposed threats of migration and Islamic activism, exacerbated by a combination of intervening factors, than by the opportunities offered by shared interests, it is argued that the European response has not unexpectedly been very limited, betraying a lack of long‐term commitment and political vision. Current policy offers neither a plausible response to the supposed threats connected with the Maghreb and based in the objective socio‐economic problems underlying them, nor a reasoned strategy based on an objective assessment of European interests in the region. This is why the current response could create or exacerbate the very insecurity it is intended to avert.