Mediterranean Dialogue (MD) was launched in 1994 and is a reflection of NATO’s view that European security is linked inextricably with security throughout the Mediterranean region. The process originally included five countries: Egypt, Israel, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia, but has since grown to seven following the inclusion of Jordan in 1995 and Algeria in 2000. Its key aims are to:


» Promote regional security and stability in the Mediterranean region
» Improve understanding between NATO and the MD countries
» Confidence-building between NATO and MD countries

A key priority of the MD process is to dispel any idea that NATO views the Mediterranean as a new dividing line. It is therefore a key element of the 1999 Strategic Concept in terms of partnership, dialogue and cooperation. At the 2004 Istanbul NATO summit an Enhanced MD initiative was launched to strengthen the political dimension and improve the level of practical cooperation.

Although MD complements the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI), it differs from it, in that it includes both a bi-lateral and multilateral component for countries within the Mediterranean region, whereas ICI is a bilateral process for countries within the Mediterranean and the broader Middle-East.