Role of the European Union in the Middle East Peace Process

The European Union (EU) has been involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the past 40 years. Sustainable solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has always been important priority on the foreign policy agenda of the EU. The main aim of this study is to analyze the role of the EU in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. However, effectiveness of the EU suffers from geographic instability in the region. Since the 1970s, the Community started to show its desire to become an actor in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process because of the EU s historical ties and proximity of the region. In the length of time, the EU has been becoming political actor in the Israel-Palestinian peace process. However, the EU s position is limited in the Middle East peace process because of its institutional weaknesses. In this respect, this study tries to point out the changing perception of the EU s political role in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.

Autorentext

Erhan Ayaz is currently lecturer at Department of European Union Studies in the Near East University. Also, he is author for several newspapers in Turkey. His main research interests include; European Union foreign policy, EU-Middle East and EU-Mediterranean relations and the Israeli-Palestinian politics.