This session of EU in Focus Series will focus on the European Union (EU)´s relations with its immediate neighbourhood to its East and South, which are framed through the Enlargement and the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). The session will first provide a general introduction to the history, main policy areas and instruments, and the geographical scope of the ENP, as well as its relation to the EU Enlargement process. The introduction will be followed by a specific focus on EU relations with Turkey and the Southern Mediterranean. We will examine Turkey´s particular status as a “special neighbour”, formally included within the framework of EU enlargement, but with dim prospects for accession in the near future, and as a key actor for a wide range of EU policies ranging from migration to security, paying particular attention to the impact of the 2015 migration crisis on EU-Turkey relations. Shifting the focus to a number of countries previously and currently included in the ENP-South, which hold key roles for the enhancement of main EU economic and security interests in the region especially after the 2011 popular uprisings that swept through the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), the last part of the session will deal with EU relations with Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya. |
