Overview

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. Borderlands: Europe and the Mediterranean Middle East proposes a profound rethink of the complex relationship between Europe-defined here as the European Union and its members-and the states of the Mediterranean Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Europe's 'southern neighbours'. These relations are examined through a borderlands prism that conceives of this interaction as of one between an empire of sorts, which seeks to export its order beyond the border, and the empire's southern borderlands. Focusing on trade relations on the one hand, and the cooperation on migration, borders, and security on the other, the book revisits the historical origins and modalities of Europe's selective rule transfer to MENA states, the interests underwriting these policies, and the complex dynamics marking the interaction between the two sides over a twenty-year period (1995-2015). It shows that within a system of structurally asymmetric economic relations from which Europe and MENA elites benefit the most, single MENA governments have been co-opted into the management of border and migration control where they act as Europe's gatekeepers. Combined with specific policy choices of MENA governments, Europe's selective expansion of its rules, practices, and disaggregated borders have in fact contributed to rising socio-economic inequalities and the strengthening of authoritarian rule in the 'southern neighbourhood', with Europe tacitly tolerating serious violations of the rights of refugees and migrants at its fringes. Challenging the self-proclaimed benevolent nature of European policies and the notion of 'Fortress Europe' alike, the findings of this study contribute to broader debates on power, dependence, and interdependence in the discipline of International Relations.

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9780198833550

Table of Contents

Reviews

This book provides scholars but also policy makers and political actors with a comprehensive and uncompromising overview of the European policies toward the Middle East. * Daniel Meier, Journal of Borderlands Studies * The book deconstructs the mainstream narrative surrounding the relations between the two regions, and then reconstructs it through the prism of imperialism ... Relying on extensive fieldwork, Del Sarto's commendable research endeavour is a recommended read for both students and researchers. * Mahmoud Javadi, European University Institute, Italy, International Affairs * As good wines often do, this recently published book could become even more valuable in the coming years. Meanwhile, it already has the attributes to merit a prominent place among the must—read books on Euro—Mediterranean relations and European foreign policy at large. * Eduard Soler i Lecha, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB), Barcelona, Spain, European Review of International Studies *

As good wines often do, this recently published book could become even more valuable in the coming years. Meanwhile, it already has the attributes to merit a prominent place among the must-read books on Euro-Mediterranean relations and European foreign policy at large. * Eduard Soler i Lecha, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB), Barcelona, Spain, European Review of International Studies *

Author Information

Raffaella A. Del Sarto is Associate Professor of Middle East Studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, SAIS Europe. Her areas of expertise include the international relations of the Middle East and North Africa-particularly in relation to Europe, the domestic-foreign policy nexus, questions of borders, power and interdependence, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Israel's foreign and domestic policies. She is the author of Israel under Siege: The Politics of Insecurity and the Rise of the Israeli Neo-Revisionist Right (Georgetown University Press, 2017) and Contested State Identities and Regional Security in the Euro-Mediterranean Area (Palgrave Macmillan, 2006), and the editor of Fragmented Borders, Interdependence and External Relations: The Israel-Palestine-European Union Triangle (Palgrave Macmillan 2015). Her articles have appeared in International Affairs, The Middle East Journal, Journal of Common Market Studies, Democratization, amongst others.

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