The EU and the Israel-Palestine conflict

Introduction The case study discussed in this chapter departs from the other case studies in this book as neither of the two conflict parties, Israel and Palestine, is geographically or, at least in the near future, politically part of the EU. Yet, while there is no immediate integration perspective for the two conflict parties, both Israel and Palestine have close linkages to the EU, both bilaterally and in the context of the multilateral Euro- Mediterranean Partnership (EMP), in which a framework of association between both countries and the EU has been established. This association dimension renders the Israel–Palestine case study central to the analysis in this book and allows us to test whether association provides for similar mechanisms in the transformation of border conflicts as integration does in the other case studies. Having said this, it is important to remember that there has been European involvement in the Middle Eastern region for centuries and in the Israeli–Arab conflict from the early twentieth century through to the present era and the formation of a common EU foreign policy (Sachar 1999; Heller 2004). As has become a commonplace among European policy-makers, developments in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have a significant influence on developments in the EU.