Algeria 
Egypt 
Israel 
Jordan 
Lebanon 
Libya 
Morocco 
Palestine * 
Syria 
Tunisia The EU-Southern Neighbourhood Relationship in Transition: From ‘Closed’ to Semi-Open Borders in the Mediterranean?
The war in Ukraine has brought to the forefront the question of borders, both as a priority but also in terms of displacement in the EU’s neighbourhood. Rather than moving closer to a “borderless” world as heralded by the advent of globalization, states are increasingly seeking to reinforce their control over specific territorial entities delineated by borders and boundaries. This is also reflected in the European project. The vision of a borderless EU, through the Schengen area of free movement, was grounded from the beginning on the assumption that internal mobility relies heavily on the external strengthening of its borders. Free mobility only applies to the citizens of the Member States and third country nationals legally residing within European borders. Inevitably, this has created a distinction between internal boundaries, which have diminished in importance, and external borders, which are at the forefront of the policy debate on migration.
