Copyright is owned by the Author of the thesis. Permission is given for a copy to be downloaded by an individual for the purpose of research and private study only. The thesis may not be reproduced elsewhere without the permission of the Author. The EU: An International Agent in Palestine? A thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Arts in Politics at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand Katherine Lyons 2009 ii iii To my father, who once gave me an apostrophe-on-a-stick. iv v Abstract This thesis examines the ability of the European Union (EU) to impact on the Palestinian people and their institutions. Before using the formal concept of actorness to examine the extent of this impact, it presents a model of actorness that synthesises aspects of Bretherton and Vogler’s and Sjösjedt’s models. It uses the components of this model as a series of lenses through which to focus on and examine various facets of the EU’s influence. The analysis deals with diplomacy, aid, and the effects of the unexpected Hamas victory in the 2006 Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) elections. The thesis finds that the EU’s early lack of diplomatic direction improved for a period but was limited by its consistent inability to have an effect if it ignored the US. In the field of aid, the EU has been a more successful actor. However, the EU’s best efforts in these spheres have been undone by two EU blunders. First, it classified Hamas as a terrorist organisation and subsequently felt unable to provide aid to a Hamas-run government. Second it joined the Quartet in the hope of increasing its own diplomatic clout, but found that it had given the US the opportunity to erode its ability to act as an independent financial agent. vi vii Acknowledgements This thesis would not have been written without the generosity of the European Union Centres Network at Canterbury University, which was kind enough to award me a course fees scholarship, and to pay my way to attend a ‘Graduate Weekend’ thesis workshop in April 2008, and speak at its 2008 annual conference. I am very grateful for the EUCN’s support. I am also in considerable debt to my supervisor, Dr Nigel Parsons, whose willingness to share his formidable knowledge of Palestinian politics in particular, and Middle East politics in general, got me interested in this topic area to begin with, and has (hopefully) kept my facts straight in this thesis. He has supported me academically, pastorally, and financially, giving me work as a marker for his undergraduate papers, and encouraging other department members to do the same. Dr Beth Greener and Associate Professor Christine Cheyne have also supported me at Massey. Beth gave me work marking undergraduate essays and tutoring her 200- level World Politics paper, while Christine allowed me to work as her research assistant two summers running. I found these jobs interesting and challenging, and both Christine and Beth were always ready to take time to help me with my own work. Beth offered comments that improved my Honours thesis immensely, and has also taken time to help with this thesis, particularly with the EU side of things, and the chapter on agency and actorness. Christine, the EUCN’s representative at Massey, looked out for me at the EUCN events, and supported me not only thorough encouragement, but also by leading by example. Her time- and people- management skills are something I aspire to. My biggest thanks of all go to my family and Phillip, who have supported me like no one else, as well as to Irene, who in recent weeks has buoyed me up with the chant, ‘Go, go Thesis Girl!’ viii Chronology 1948 May Israeli-Arab War/Declaration of Israeli State 1951 April ‘Inner Six’ Treaty of Paris forms European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) 1957 March Treaty of Rome forms the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Agency (Euratom) 1965 July Brussels Treaty merges the ECSC and Euratom under EEC governance (known as the EC) 1967 June Israeli-Arab war (Six Day War) July Brussels Treaty comes into effect November UNSCR 242 1970 November European Political Cooperation (EPC) launched 1971 First EC joint position on the Middle East EC begins funding UNRWA 1972 UN resolution stating that recognising the Palestinians’ rights was essential to any Arab-Israeli peace settlement 1973 January UK, Ireland and Denmark join the EC October 6th: Arab-Israeli war (October War) 15th: Arab oil embargo of Israeli supporters 22nd: UNSCR 338 1974 June 12th PNC: PLO acceptance of a two-state solution 1976 January Election of US President Jimmy Carter 1977 June European Council agrees that Palestinians should have homeland 1978 September Camp David Accords 1979 March Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty 1980 June Venice Declaration ix 1981 January Greece joins the EC 1982 June Israeli invasion of Lebanon 1986 January Spain and Portugal join the EC 1987 December First Intifada begins 1988 November 19th PNC announced readiness to negotiate with Israel and renounced terrorism 1991 October Madrid Conference Israel’s Closure Policy Introduced 1992 February Maastricht Treaty agrees on formation of the EU 1993 September Signing of the Oslo Accords November Maastricht Treaty comes into effect - EU comes into existence December The first donor conference on police aid 1995 January Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU September Oslo II November Barcelona Conference and establishment of EMP November Assassination of Israel’s Labour Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin 1996 May Benjamin Netanyahu’s election November Luxembourg declaration December Creation of the post of EUSR December Arab nations drop support for multilateral working groups 1997 January Hebron Protocol July EU-PLO interim association agreement October Treaty of Amsterdam 1999 October Wye River Memorandum April Berlin Declaration: Call for Palestinian State June ESDP officially launched Javier Solana appointed High Representative to CFSP x 2000 June EU-Israel Association Agreement June European Council Common Strategy on the Mediterranean Region July Camp David II September Second Intifada begins 2001 January Taba Peace Conference February Nice Treaty February Ariel Sharon elected September 11 September Attacks on US US declares war on ‘Terror’ Bush: “either you’re with us, or with the terrorists” October US Invasion of Afghanistan 2002 April Formation of the Middle East Quartet June Seville declaration September Quartet Roadmap 2003 March US Invasion of Iraq March ENP outlined September EU adds Hamas to terrorist list 2004 May Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia, plus the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Cyprus join the EU November Mahmoud 'Abbas made Prime Minister after Yasser Arafat dies December EU-Israel and EU-PA Action Plan 2005 January EU COPPS established November EUPOL COPPS & EUBAM Rafah established 2006 January Hamas election victory EUPOL COPPS deployed March Boycott of PA June Hamas kidnaps Gilad Shalit 2007 January Romania and Bulgaria join the EU June Fatah-Hamas Government Collapse Hamas takes Gaza July Funding to Fatah-led PA resumed 2008 July EPM re -launched as Union for the Mediterranean December Israel launches Operation Cast Lead 2009 June US President Barak Obama insists Palestine has right to exist Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admits possibility of ‘two state solution’ xi Abbreviations ACRS Arms Control and Regional Security multilateral working group AHLC Ad Hoc Liasion Committee for assistance to the Palestinian People AMA Agreement on Movement and Access AU African Union CAP Common Agricultural Policy CFSP Common Foreign and Security Policy CJHA Cooperation in Justice and Home Affairs COTER Counter Terrorism Programme DoP Declaration of Principles EAD Euro-Arab Dialogue EC European Community ECHO European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office ECTAO European Commission Technical Assistance Office EEA European Economic Area EIDHR European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights EMP Euro-Mediterranean Partnership EMU Economic and Monetary Union ENP European Neighbourhood Policy ENPI European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument EPC European Political Cooperation ESDP European Security and Defence Policy ESF Executive Support Force EU European Union EUBAM Rafah EU Border Assistance Mission at Rafah EU COPPS European Union Coordinating Office for Palestine Police Support EUPOL COPPS EU Police Mission for the Palestinian Territories EUSR EU Special Representative EWG Environmental Working Group FAO Food and Agricultural Organisation GAERC General Affairs and External Relations Council GDP Gross Domestic Product ICA Israeli Civil Administration IGO Intergovernmental Organisations IR International Relations MC Monitoring Committee MDG Millennium Development Goals MEDA Mesures d'Accompagnement Programme MENA Middle East and North Africa MNC Multinational Corporation MPC Mediterranean Partnership Countries MWG Multilateral Working Group xii MWGWR Multilateral Working Group on Water Resources NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organisation NGO Non Governmental Organisation NSF National Security Force OAPEC Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries OPEC Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries PA Palestinian Authority PBC Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation PDRP Palestinian Authority Development and Reform Plan PEGASE Mécanisme Palestino-Européen de Gestion de l'Aide Socio- Economique PISGA Palestine Interim Self-Governing Authority PLO Palestine Liberation Organisation PNC Palestine National Council PSF Preventative Security Force REDWG Regional Economic and Development Working Group RWG Refugee Working Group SWG/Institution Building Sectoral Working Group on Institution Building SWG/Police Sectoral Working Group on Police SWG Sectoral Working Group TFPR Task Force for Palestinian Reform TIM Temporary International Mechanism TIPH Temporary International Mission in Hebron UN United Nations UNGA United Nations General Assembly UNRWA United Nations Relief and Works Agency UNSCO United Nations Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process UNSCR United Nations Security Council Resolution US United States WFP World Food Programme WTO World Trade Organisation xiii Contents 1. THE EU AS ACTOR: DOES IT DESERVE AN AWARD NOMINATION? ......................1 2. INTERNATIONAL AGENT EU? .....................................................................................................7 Intergovernmental Organisations and Agency .....................................................................8 Agency and structure...........................................................................................10 Actorness ...............................................................................................................14 The EU and Agency................................................................................................................... 18 Capability ..............................................................................................................19 Presence.................................................................................................................26 Opportunity...........................................................................................................28 EU Institutions and the PA ...................................................................................................... 30 Conclusion: The EU as an International Agent................................................................. 36 3. BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR? HOW THE EU ACTS DIPLOMATICALLY .............. 39 Pre-Oslo EC diplomacy: The EC as an embryonic actor ................................................ 41 The EC from 1967-1973: Slowly building consistency on the Palestinian issue........................................................................................................................42 The 1973 Arab-Israeli War: The power of the ‘oil weapon’........................45 The Camp David accords: A challenge for EC agency.................................50 The Venice declaration: A clear display of EC agency.................................53 The EC’s fledgling agency in the Middle East................................................56 The EU and the Oslo period: The EU as a ‘complementary’ diplomatic agent ............................................................................................................................................... 57 The Madrid conference: The EC takes up a supporting role.......................58 The Oslo process (1993-2000) and the EU’s ‘structural foreign policy’...60 Oslo in crisis: A new opportunity for EU agency...........................................65 The EU’s agency during the Oslo years...........................................................69 EU diplomatic agency in the era of the Quartet................................................................ 70 The EU and the intifada: Limited opportunities for agency.........................71 The EU’s increased opportunities for agency as a Quartet member ..........75 Agency takes a new turn: Operation Cast Lead, Israeli settlements, and the Israeli-EU relations upgrade.............................................................................77 Conclusion: The EU’s diplomatic agency with respect to the Palestinians ................ 83 4. AGENT EU: LICENCED TO GIVE AID .................................................................................... 85 The EU’s financial agency in UNRWA: Building presence in the Palestinian territories ................................................................................................................ 86 The EC/EU and the Oslo process: An opportunity for economic agency in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict................................................................................................. 88 The EU and Madrid’s multilateral work ing groups: An opportunity to build presence and promote shared values......................................................89 xiv The EU and the international donor community: Competing for agency in the AHLC ...............................................................................................................95 The EU and the EMP: Strong values but compromised agency.................................101 The EMP’s development: Increasing access to economic tools ............... 102 Shared values in the EMP................................................................................ 106 Exercising the EMP: Putting shared values into practice......................... 109 The EU and the EMP: Agency restricted...................................................... 114 The EU and the Palestinian police.......................................................................................115 Early EU involvement in Palestinian police assistance ............................. 116 Quasi-military policy tools: EUPOL COPPS and EUBAM Rafah........... 118 Conclusion: The EU’s assistance to the Palestinians ......................................................123 5. SHAKEN AND STIRRED: HOW THE HAMAS VICTORY HAS AFFECTED INTERNATIONAL AGENT EU ..................................................................................................127 The Hamas victory: A challenge for EU actorness.........................................................128 The EU’s shared values and stated policies as they correspond to its relationship with the Palestinians.................................................................. 129 Hamas: A challenge for the EU’s shared values and policy coherence.. 130 The EU’s Hamas boycott and the Temporary International Mechanism: Incoherent, ineffective, and detrimental to the Palestinians...................... 137 The boycott and the Quartet’s goals: Only semi-successful ...................... 144 The EU’s response to the unity government: Constrained by opportunity and by its own character.................................................................................. 148 The fall of the unity government: A new opportunity for EU agency in the West Bank, but more of the same in Gaza..................................................... 151 The EU’s agency in the Palestinian territories since Hamas’s 2006 election victory..........................................................................................................................................156 6. CONCLUSION: SHAKY BEGINNINGS AND MID-CAREER PRATFALLS, BUT OVERALL A DECENT LITTLE PERFORMER .........................................................159 Summary.....................................................................................................................................159 Discussion ...................................................................................................................................163 In Summary ...............................................................................................................................164 7. BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................................................................................165 Agreements, Treaties...............................................................................................................165 Declarations, Resolutions, Statements, Conclusions, Speeches, Communications .......................................................................................................................166 Reports ........................................................................................................................................170 Information sheets, Press statements, Web pages ...........................................................172 Miscellaneous Primary Sources............................................................................................179 Newspaper Reports ..................................................................................................................180 xv Papers, Conference notes .......................................................................................................187 Theses ..........................................................................................................................................189 Journal Articles.........................................................................................................................189 Books............................................................................................................................................195