The Betrayal

The Barcelona Declaration is a working agreement formed between the EU and islamic Mediterranean states (and, surprisingly, Israel) to create a free-trade area, with all the implications that it brings with it, by 2010. The EU plan involves the breakdown of national barriers, controlled immigration, economic help of astronomic proportions and cultural exchange on all levels. Indeed, they have also created something called the Barcelona Process, which reminds us of another project, to facilitate the smooth passage of the Euromed area to reality. The press, the main stream media, are also involved in this affair. The underdeveloped lands that surround the Mediterranean are to be promoted in a favourable light and the Euro press center also has its own organisation to feed the necessary information to the press. This comes from the website “Euromed and the media”;

BACKGROUND

The tenth year of the Barcelona Process, as the Year of the Mediterranean, is an opportunity for reflection on achievements to date and for renewed determination to reinforce the relationships between the countries of the Southern Mediterranean and the European Union. Ten years of dialogue and cooperation have sought to improve political and economic cooperation and to advance mutual knowledge and understanding; this process is now being extended to include the region’s media. In the second half of 2005, selected international journalists will participate in meetings to devise input into policy affecting the media in the next phase of the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership.

OUTLINE

The process will begin with a meeting in Jordan of key international journalists and analysts from the EMP area. Balanced selection will ensure participation not just of North and South but also of those Mediterranean countries whose media are rarely found in joint deliberations. The aim is to discuss the role of the media in the complex and often limited relationships between countries of the EMP. Themes from this initial gathering will be carried into further meetings in Marseille and Barcelona; the outcomes, to be specified by the participants themselves as a reflection of priorities for their profession, will be delivered to the November Barcelona meeting of Heads of State as an input to policy considerations.

So that was two years ago. The “process” continues.
Who is involved? See the list of signatories below.

The Council of the European Union, represented by its President, Mr Javier SOLANA, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Spain.
The European Commission, represented by Mr Manuel MARIN, VicePresident,
Germany, represented by Mr Klaus KINKEL, ViceChancellor and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Algeria, represented by Mr Mohamed Salah DEMBRI, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Austria, represented by Mrs Benita FERREROWALDNER, State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Belgium, represented by Mr Erik DERYCKE, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Cyprus, represented by Mr Alecos MICHAELIDES, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Denmark, represented by Mr Ole Loensmann POULSEN, State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Egypt, represented by Mr Amr MOUSSA, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Spain, represented by Mr Carlos WESTENDORP, State Secretary for Relations with the European Community,
Finland, represented by Mrs Tarja HALONEN, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
France, represented by Mr Hervé de CHARETTE, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Greece, represented by Mr Károlos PAPOULIAS, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Ireland, represented by Mr Dick SPRING, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Israel, represented by Mr Ehud BARAK, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Italy, represented by Mrs Susanna AGNELLI, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Jordan, represented by Mr AbdelKarim KABARITI, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Lebanon, represented by Mr Fares BOUEZ, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Luxembourg, represented by Mr Jacques F. POOS, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Cooperation,
Malta, represented by Prof. Guido DE MARCO, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Morocco, represented by Mr Abdellatif FILALI, Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
The Netherlands, represented by Mr Hans van MIERLO, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Portugal, represented by Mr Jaime GAMA, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
The United Kingdom, represented by Mr Malcolm RIFKIND QC MP, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs,
Syria, represented by Mr Farouk AL-SHARAA, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Sweden, represented by Mrs Lena HJELM-WALLEN, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Tunisia, represented by Mr Habib Ben YAHIA, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Turkey, represented by Mr Deniz BAYKAL, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
The Palestinian Authority, represented by Mr Yassir ARAFAT, President of the Palestinian Authority.

Who says we’re not being Islamised? And now perhaps, we know why. Welcome to Euromed.