On Migration and Security, There Are Actually Three Mediterranean Stories

Some of the most compelling dramas about the effects of globalization are playing out in the Mediterranean basin today. This is understandable given the region’s position, where the worlds of the North and South intersect, quite tragically in recent years. But three distinct zones of the Mediterranean show quite different coping mechanisms with respect to three major global challenges: migration, terrorism and economic interdependence.

Throughout history, the Mediterranean has been a crossroad of cultural interaction between great empires and civilizations. Resources, people and ideas have moved from South to North, and back again, creating the great multicultural cities of Venice and Alexandria, to name just two. In the fast-paced 21st century, however, the movement of people from Africa and the Middle East toward Europe has threatened domestic cohesion in some key states on the northern littoral of the sea. Terrorism, which is correlated with but not necessarily caused by the human migration, adds to the negative dynamic. ...