Libyan compensation payments to the victims of the La Belle bombing and Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's upcoming visit to Libya represent two more significant steps toward reconciliation between the North African state and the European Union. The rapidity of this normalization process can be...

The strongest armed faction in Algeria has changed its name to 'al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb', thus announcing a move towards internationalisation. It is not clear whether the group, in its weakened state, has simply adopted a new handle for recruitment purposes or whether it aims to step up...

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's project of a Mediterranean Union, which would have involved only the countries bordering on the Mediterranean but not the entire European Union, has caused months of tensions, particularly between Germany and France. It was pressure from the German federal...

The idea of supplying Germany and Europe with solar energy from the desert remains highly controversial, but it is an idea that has been gaining traction with both policy makers and the private sector. This is because of two recently launched, large-scale projects: the Solar Plan of the EU and...

Following the fall of Tunisia's President and in light of the upheaval in Egypt, the spectre of domino effects has been raised. The lack of prospects for young people, social injustice and political repression - all causes that sparked the protests in Tunisia - are problems in virtually all Arab...

The electoral success of the moderate Islamist Ennahda will do no harm to the chances of successful democratisation in Tunisia. Quite the contrary in fact: the new situation is favourable, because Ennahda will take on the responsibility of government without being able to rule alone. The...

With the re-election of the seriously ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algeria's power elites have gained time to reach agreement over the general outline of the post-Bouteflika era. Despite rising fears within the regime of social unrest in the absence of fundamental reforms, precious few...

Tunisia is the only Arab state currently undergoing a democratic transition. But this process is unfolding under increasingly difficult conditions. The economic crisis and the security challenges posed by armed Islamists are exacerbating one another. If Germany does not wish to see a reversal of...