The European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, revealed that there are economic plans and investments with Middle Eastern and North African countries, among which is the triangular cooperation between the European Union, Morocco, and Israel on water management.
Olivér Várhelyi stated before the European Parliament in Brussels that the European Commission started to seriously look into supporting the normalization of diplomatic relations between Israel and a group of “Arab Neighbors” in sectors where opportunities for partnership are present or will emerge in the future.
During his presentation of the new agenda on the Mediterranean Basin, the European Commissioner stated that the pandemic and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict “proved clearly that the prosperity and stability of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East are closely interlinked.”
The European official stated: “We are on the right track to build a positive agenda and present it to the Mediterranean region, including an economic and investment plan.” He went on to add that “this plan can reach 7 billion euros and encourage investments amounting to 30 billion euros.”
Várhelyi highlighted that among these projects is the tripartite energy agreement between the European Union, Egypt, and Israel, going as far as to say that the two states “have become reliable and permanent partners to ensure Europe’s energy security and diversify its supply.”