The Union for the Mediterranean is a French-inspired project aimed at boosting relations between the European Union and the countries of the southern and eastern Mediterranean, writes Tony Barber in Brussels.

It builds on the EU's Barcelona Process, which was launched in 1995 and is generally seen as having failed to achieve much of substance. Among the reasons are the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, rivalries among north African and Arab countries, and the complaint of non-EU countries that the Europeans set the agenda without taking their wishes into consideration. The European Commission has outlined four projects for the new union: tackling pollution in the Mediterranean sea, promoting solar energy, developing sea routes and upgrading port facilities, and building a new road-link for north Africa.