EU policies concerning Lebanon and the bilateral cooperation on migration and security – new challenges calling for new institutional practices?

Abstract

Arguing that a security-stability nexus is a dominant theme in shaping the EU's foreign policy approach towards recent challenges in the Mediterranean, the article applies a historical institutionalist theoretical framework when analysing EU policies concerning Lebanon. The article discusses how the EU-Lebanese cooperation in the light of the unstable political environment in Lebanon is being impacted by the Syrian crisis and how this has been dealt with by EU institutions. It is argued that significant changes in the EU's policies and practices over recent years have taken place. Related to the EU-Lebanon Association Council decision of November 2016 launching the EU-Lebanon Compact, new institutional systems and practices are established regarding cooperation within areas where the EU and Lebanon share common interests. Finally, it is shown that the EU's institutional setup in connection with the Compact represents a pragmatic approach, which, dealing with a crisis situation, aims at making concrete and tangible practices possible.

Localising aid: Urban displacement, contested public authority and legitimacy in Jordan and Lebanon

“…While public authority and related concepts have been clearly adopted by donors, it is not plausible that they have failed to understand the risks that no-contact policies entail. Rather, the decision to list a terrorist organisation is usually made by a state's foreign policy branch based on geopolitical, security and international relations considerations (Seeberg, 2018) to override humanitarian principles, donor development and state-building objectives (Modirzadeh et al, 2011). This pushes aside the notion that even non-state actors who violate the norms of donors may have a constructive role to play in state-building (OECD, 2010).…”

EU Searching for Gatekeepers: Lebanon in European Externalized Migration Management

“…Lebanese policy reaffirmed the perception of temporariness of refugees stay, by denying the establishment of refugee camps, contrary to Turkey and Jordan (Seeberg, 2018).…”

The governance of Syrian refugees in the Middle East: Lessons from the Jordan and Lebanon Compacts

“…Lebanon, for its part, needed tangible assistance to stabilize its struggling economy. Overall, the compact can be interpreted as a set of weakly formalized policy instruments and measures following a pragmatic approach to acute problems (Seeberg, 2018, p. 6). One of the more tangible measures adopted was the pledge to create 300,000 to 350,000 new jobs in Lebanon, of which 60% were to go to Syrians residing in Lebanon; this measure, however, has yet to be implemented.…”

“…The European Union and Lebanon shared an interest in preventing a destabilization of Lebanon, though they did not necessarily agree on how to do that. The European Union was arguably interested in signaling to its member states that measures were being taken to alleviate the suffering of Syrians in Lebanon so that they would stay out of Europe (Seeberg, 2018). Lebanon, for its part, needed tangible assistance to stabilize its struggling economy.…”