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President Sarkozy’s “Mediterranean Union” project has been perceived from the outset as an attempt to distract Turkey from its EU membership ambitions. The February 2007 Toulon speech explicitly mentioned Turkey as a central pillar of the new co-operative structure to be established under French leadership. Yet Turkish interests in the Mediterranean do not necessarily match the French vision. Occasional Turkish commitment has nonetheless been observed on some regional Mediterranean initiatives, which suggest that the Turkish government could opt for conditional participation in the UMed project.

Dorothée Schmid, research fellow, North Africa/Middle East Unit, is head of the 'Contemporary Turkey' program.