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by Anders Persson (Author)
Nearly 50 years since the European Foreign Ministers issued their first declaration on the conflict between Israel and Palestine in 1971, EU continues to have close political and economic ties with the region. Based exclusively on primary sources, this study offers an up-to-date overview of EU's involvement in the Israeli-Arab conflict since 1967. It utilises an innovative methodology to analyse keyword frequency in a sample of more than 2300 declarations and statements published in the Bulletin of the European Communities/European Union (1967-2009) as well as council reports and press interviews (2009-2018) to uncover broad patterns for qualitative analysis. The outcomes suggest that the Israeli-Arab conflict is more important to the EU than any other conflict, having been key to shaping EU's foreign policy overall.
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'Anders Persson has provided an indispensable resource chronicling the evolution of European policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict over the past fifty years. His in-depth research recounts the EU's quest to become a 'player' in Middle East peacemaking, documenting the challenges and missed opportunities it has encountered along with the way.' Hugh Lovatt, European Council on Foreign Relations A historical overview of the European Union's fifty year involvement in the Israeli-Arab conflict Nearly fifty years since the European Community's Foreign Ministers issued their first declaration on the conflict between Israel and her neighbours in 1971, the EU continues to have close political and economic ties with the region. Based exclusively on primary sources, this book offers an up-to-date overview of the EU's involvement in the Israeli-Arab conflict since 1967. It utilises an innovative methodology to analyse keyword frequency in a sample of more than 2,500 declarations and statements published in the Bulletin of the European Communities/European Union (1967-2009), as well as council reports and press interviews (2009-19), to uncover broad patterns for qualitative analysis. The outcomes suggest that the Israeli-Arab conflict is more important to the EU than any other conflict, having been central to shaping the EU's foreign policy overall. Key features - Provides a historical overview with chronologically organised chapters for a quick reference of the EU's position on specific events - Covers recent events that contributed to the fragmentation of the EU's policy vis-à-vis the conflict, such as the election of Donald Trump, Brexit, and the rise of various right-wing, nationalist or populist parties and governments in Europe - Introduces an innovative methodology applicable to similar studies of the Bulletin that trace other aspects of EU policy - Includes an annotated selection of key EC/EU statements on the Israeli-Arab conflict Anders Persson is a political scientist and part of the research environment European Studies at Linnaeus University, Sweden. Cover image: photo by the author. Israeli settlement of Itamar, northern West Bank, June 2018. Cover design: [EUP logo] edinburghuniversitypress.com ISBN 978-1-4744-7472-6 Barcode
Author Biography
Anders Persson is a political scientist and part of the research environment European Studies at Linnaeus University, Sweden. He is the author of The EU and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, 1971-2013: In Pursuit of a Just Peace (Rowman & Littlefield, 2015) and a contributor in Palestine and Rule of Power: Local Dissent vs. International Governance, Tartir & Seidel eds. (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018). His research has been previously published in the Journal of European Integration, Mediterranean Politics, and Journal of Conflict Transformation and Security. He also regularly appears as an expert commentator in Swedish media and writes for the Huffington Post, Haaretz, Al-Jazeera, EU Observer and Politico EU.
