MEDITERRANEAN FORUM
(FOROMED)

I. MEMBERS

Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey.

II. BRIEF HISTORY

There have been many ideas and initiatives of establishing cooperation in the Mediterranean. However, due to the constraints posed by developments in the Middle East, the desired results have not materialized. That is why the Mediterranean Forum, also referred to as Foromed came into being. This “Like Minded” grouping was formed on the initiative of Egypt and France. Its first meeting was held in Alexandria on 3-4 July 1994 where the “Mediterranean Forum” was founded with the participation of Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey.

At its outset, three working groups were created; namely the “Political Working Group”, the “Economic and Social Working Group” and the “Cultural Working Group”. During the Political Working Group meeting held in Tunis on 12-13 April 1996, it was decided that the Senior Officials Meetings ought to be merged with the Political Working Group and the Economic and Social Working Group ought to be merged with the Cultural Working Group and renamed the Economic Working Group.

During the Senior Officials Meeting held on 9 February 1998 in Madrid, it was agreed to that the flexible nature of the Forum ought to be guarded, while at the same time more emphasis ought to be given to the economic and cultural chapters. It was also agreed to that, whilst protecting the independance of the Forum, the Forum ought to assist the Barcelona Process.

The Second Ministerial Meeting was held in Saint-Maxime, France on 8-9 April 1995. During this meeting discussions focused on the future of the Forum and its objectives. Another issue which was deliberated upon during the meeting was the candidature of other states who were interested in joining the Forum. As a result of deliberations it was agreed to that there would be two prerequisites for becoming a member : The first was that the country needed to be Mediterranean (littoral) and the second was that there needed to be a consensus on the membership. It was decided that for the time being no new members would be admitted and that the Forum would continue under its present composition.

Again at this meeting, the priority areas of cooperation put forward by the Economic Working Group was adopted and in this regard it was agreed to that the economic and social disparity between the north and south of the Mediterranean ought to be diminished, and that the level of welfare developed whilst giving more importance to regional integration and the expansion of trade. There was also a general consensus on the fact that duplication with other fora ought to be avoided.

The Third Ministerial Meeting took place in Ravello-Italy on 9-10 May 1996, where it was reiterated that when the time was right, enlargement of the group would take place according to the criteria set forth (being Mediterranean and on the basis of consensus).

The Fourth Ministerial Meeting took place in Algiers-Algeria on 11-12 July 1997, where it was decided that the informal nature of the Forum ought to be protected and that the Forum members ought to concentrate their activities on developing ways on preventive diplomacy, continuous dialogue and understanding among each other.
 

The Fifth Ministreal Meeting took place in Palma De Mallorca on 20-21 April 1998, where the Ministers had an in-depth exchange of views on how to reinforce their action to respond to the challenges they must meet to enhance stability and security in the region.

The Sixth Ministerial Meeting took place in St-Julian’s, Malta on 4-5 March 1999 where the Ministers deliberated mainly upon the Euro-Mediterranean Peace and Stability Charter, which was also the focus of the meeting which was held in Palma de Majorca-Spain in April 1998.

The Seventh Ministerial Meeting took place in Funchal-Portugal on 30-31 March 2000, where it was decided that in order to streamline the activities of the various working groups, the country which would take over the Presidency would also be responsible for the activities of the working groups. It was also decided during this meeting that the Senior Officials would convene 3-4 times during each Presidency prior to the Ministerial Meeting.

The Eighth Ministerial Meeting took place in Tangiers on 10-11 May 2001 where deliberations focused on the Middle East Peace Process, Cooperation in the Mediterranean, Regional Integration and Investments, Promotion of the Mediterranean and Security issues in the Mediterranean.

The Ninth Ministerial Meeting took place in Mykonos/Delos-Greece on 18-19 May 2002, where for the first time the meeting was attended by intellectuals of each participating country along with some prominent international personalities such as Boutros Boutros Ghali, the ex-Secretary General of the UN. The theme of the meeting was Dialogue of Cultures and the Code of Conduct on Terrorism was also approved and adopted during this meeting, which in itself is a very important achievement of the Forum.

III. STRUCTURE

The Mediterranean Forum is a strictly regional institution of inter-governmental dialogue. There is a rotation of the Presidency every year and at the end of each Presidency a Foreign Affairs Ministers Meeting is held.

However, there is the possibility of holding ad-hoc or Extraordinary Ministerial Meetings such as the one held in Agadir-Morocco in October 2001 on the effects of 11 September.

Senior Officials of the Mediterranean Forum hold 3-4 meetings every year. There are also expert level meetings, such as the ones on terrorism.

Seminars and workshops are held regularly on topics of common interest.

The Forum has no permanent structure such as a secretariat and the functions of a secretariat are thus performed by the coordinator of the term Presidency.

The Forum also does not have any funds, therefore all activities are catered for by the state or states wishing to engage in an activity such as a seminar or meeting.

IV. MINISTERIAL MEETINGS TO DATE

The first Ministerial Meeting was held in Alexandria-Egypt in July 1994. This meeting was followed by ;
Saint-Maxime-France in April 1995 ;
by Ravello-Italy in May 1996 ;
by Algiers-Algeria in July 1997 ;
by Palma de Majorca-Spain in April 1998 ;
by Malta in March 1999 ;
by Funchal-Portugal in March 2000 ;
by Tangiers-Morocco in May 2001 and
by Delos-Greece in May 2002.

The Mediterranean Forum has held two extraordinary sessions, in Tabarka-Tunisia in July 1995 and in Agadir-Morocco in October 2001.

The Tenth ordinary meeting will take place in Antalya-Turkey on 9-10 October 2003.

V. OBJECTIVES

The eleven member countries are committed to a real, effective and comprehensive partnership in the Mediterranean area, to make this birthplace of civilisations a zone of peace and security, development and prosperity, mutual tolerance, understanding and exchanges between the peoples of the region, in the framework of the promotion of the rule of law, plural democracy and human rights.

VI. PRESIDENCY CONCLUSIONS

Alexandria-Egypt, July 1994
Saint-Maxime-France, April 1995
Ravello-Italy, May 1996
Algiers-Algeria, July 1997
Malta, March 1999
Funchal-Portugal, March 2000
Tangiers-Morocco, May 2001
Delos-Greece, May 2002
Antalya-Turkey, October 2003