Proposal to create the East Mediterranean Energy Community

After several weeks of consultations in various capitals from Ankara to Tel Aviv, Washington D.C. and Brussels, I believe that it is high time to propose a regional champion to advocate integration, partnerships, dispute settlement, data sharing, analysis and engagement with key stakeholders in a dynamic and informal setting, free from political animosities and tensions.

The strategic objective of the proposed new dynamic, informal, regional umbrella is to create the East Mediterranean Energy Community (EMEC). While hydrocarbon development and exports will constitute one immediate element of the EMEC partnership, it will also encompass other areas of energy, diplomacy and investment as required. 

The initiative should initially remain informal and free of bureaucracy because we feel there is a considerable risk for governments to quickly poison the atmosphere by rehearsing their well-known clichés and rigid positions. However, the ground should be prepared for their eventual engagement, which is of course critical for its success.

The EMEC membership should include key, respected and influential figures - businessmen, former ministers, think-tank chief executives, bankers, journalists and former generals - from Cyprus (both Greek and Turkish Cypriots), Egypt, Greece, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The EU and the U.S., as well as several development banks and official development assistance (ODA) agencies, can also be represented as honest brokers and facilitators.

The EMEC can have a small secretariat of six staff, seconded by countries in the region working under an executive director, as well as a small office and budget, and a rotating political chairmanship. The EMEC can convene at the ministerial level once a year, as...