The IEMed Mediterranean Yearbook is published annually with the aim of offering analysis and responses to the major challenges facing the region’s development. However, the harsh reality of the region seems to condemn us to an inevitable pessimism. A bitter reality represented by the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. The devastation suffered by the Palestinian population has become a mirror reflecting the most serious consequences of international indifference to the suffering of a people. The situation in Gaza has become the starkest reflection of the crisis sweeping the Mediterranean and the world. The material devastation, the suffering of a trapped civilian population and the international community’s inability to stem the violence force us to face the worst consequences of indifference: the normalization of collective pain and the erosion of the basic principles of dignity and solidarity.
This tragedy is the most visible symptom of a region subjected to multiple and growing tensions. The Mediterranean reflects the fractures of a weakened international order with particular intensity: entrenched conflicts, rising authoritarianism, fragile economies, polarized societies and climate change, which threatens the possibility of achieving everyday development.
Long-term challenges — the energy and digital transition, migration management, the reduction of inequalities and the need for new forms of regional cooperation — are intertwined with immediate crises and a growing difficulty in articulating common responses. The Mediterranean thus appears as a vulnerable space, where humanitarian tragedies overlap with fundamental structural transformations and raise questions about the capacity of actors to build a more stable future.
Recent years have confirmed that the Mediterranean region is home to many of the challenges currently shaping the global agenda: the climate crisis, forced displacement, food and energy insecurity, the erosion of multilateralism and the rise of authoritarian populism. In this sense, looking at the Mediterranean means looking in the mirror of the contemporary world.
In this context of uncertainty and successive crises, the central Dossier of the 2025 Yearbook analyses the reconfiguration of the international order and the territorial wars in the Middle East as key to understanding the Mediterranean’s position in the world. The region cannot be understood in isolation: it reflects global tensions between powers and is the scene of regional rivalries. Examining how these dynamics intersect is essential for situating the Mediterranean within the new international balance that has been emerging strongly in recent years.
The Dossier offers a pluralistic view through contributions that address the position of key geopolitical actors within the framework of a new multipolar global system, more unpredictable and fraught with rivalries, in which rules matter less and economic and military power matter more, though alliances remain important.
The European Union seeks to regain prominence with new instruments that aim to give more coherence and resources to its endeavours in security, reconstruction and economic cooperation. The United States is recalibrating its presence in the region with Donald Trump’s return to the presidency. Russia, weakened by Ukraine and the fall of Al-Assad, maintains a flexible presence but with less capacity, adapting to the new reality as far as possible; while China continues to expand its economic and logistical footprint, although it avoids assuming the costs of a more active political role than that of a peaceful mediator.
Among regional actors, Türkiye has strengthened its role as a pivotal power, with the capacity to engage in dialogue with multiple partners and exert influence in strategic arenas. Iran, on the other hand, has seen its room for manoeuvring reduced following its confrontation with Israel and its loss of influence in Syria, while Israel faces the dilemma of managing the war, maintaining its alliance with Washington and exploring possible normalizations. Finally, in the Maghreb, regional fragmentation and the persistent rivalry between Morocco and Algeria are hindering any cooperation projects and creating a deadlock.
The Keys section of this edition focuses on four fundamental areas that are shaping the present and future of the Mediterranean. Firstly, within the framework of the 30th anniversary of the Barcelona Process, the New Pact for the Mediterranean is discussed. Against a backdrop of growing global competition and declining European influence, it analyses the possibilities for renewing the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership and the European Union’s relationship with the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region in the face of the challenge posed by internal divisions and budgetary constraints within the Union.
Secondly, the economic challenges facing the Mediterranean area are addressed. Geopolitical instability and recent crises have reshaped global value chains, introducing uncertainty about the region’s economic integration. Added to this is the pressure of climate change, which is forcing us to abandon development tools that are harmful to the environment and commit to sustainable financial and economic instruments. At the same time, digitalization and artificial intelligence are transforming Mediterranean labour markets, creating new opportunities but also risks of exclusion in the absence of adequate training and skills development policies.
The third Key is dedicated to the legacy of the destruction of Gaza, which transcends humanitarian issues to become a political and geostrategic issue of the first order. The Yearbook examines the magnitude of the material and human devastation that continues unabated, the normalization of the dehumanization of others in public discourse, the erosion of the West’s image in a world marked by conflicting narratives and, finally, future scenarios in which an end to the bloodshed and destruction of livelihoods still seems a long way off without community unity to halt the devastation.
Finally, the fourth Key addresses the fall of the Al-Assad regime and Syria’s uncertain future. After more than a decade of civil war, the sudden and dramatic disappearance of the leadership that marked the country for half a century opens up a scenario of uncertainty. The Yearbook examines the geopolitical transformations this has wrought on the regional balance, as well as the enormous difficulties faced by a deeply wounded society seeking to rebuild itself in an environment of political, economic and social fragility.
As every year, the Panorama section completes the Yearbook with a wide variety of short articles offering a cross-cutting view of the situation in the region. The first part, organized geographically, addresses, on the one hand, situations of conflict or tension between Mediterranean countries, such as the 50th anniversary of the division of Cyprus, the negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo, and the future of the Prespa Agreement in North Macedonia, while, on the other hand, it also reviews the internal politics of Mediterranean countries, with articles dealing, among other things, with growing authoritarianism in Tunisia, persistent tensions in Libya, Egypt’s socioeconomic problems, Palestinian divisions, and how the lack of political alternatives in Israel is making an end to the war increasingly unlikely. Not to mention external actors with a significant influence in the region, such as the conflict in Yemen and security in the Red Sea.
The second part of the Panorama, which is thematic and sectoral in nature, offers a mosaic of key issues for understanding the complexity of the Mediterranean. In the sphere of security, it reflects on the need for European defence capabilities and the use of artificial intelligence in conflicts, particularly in Gaza. On the economic and territorial front, it analyses China’s growing role in the digital transformation of the MENA region, the need for regional integration to ensure food security, the challenges of the energy transition in North Africa, and training needs in a changing labour market.
The sectoral articles also cover some of the today’s environmental challenges, such as water security and financing for climate adaptation, as well as social issues, including disinformation in the context of the war in Gaza, the return of refugees to Syria, EU migration policies and structural racism in North Africa. Finally, the cultural sphere includes articles on the destruction of heritage in Gaza, cultural diplomacy in the Mediterranean and the role of young people in dialogue and participation processes.
Finally, the Annexes remain an essential reference tool. The timelines, statistics, maps and graphs offer a wealth of information that complements and supports the analyses developed in the articles. Far from being a mere supplement, they constitute an essential tool for understanding the depth of the processes described and contextualizing their evolution over time. These resources make it possible to accurately track the evolution of the countries and major issues in the region, consolidating the Yearbook’s continuity as an archive of Mediterranean memory and knowledge.
The production of this new edition of the Yearbook would not have been possible without the involvement of those who contribute their knowledge and experience: authors, advisory board, editorial team, translators, proofreaders, layout designers and all the professionals at the IEMed who ensure the publication of this collective work year after year.
Given the challenges facing the Mediterranean, we know that it is difficult to change the dynamics that fuel conflict and inequality. However, only through knowledge, rigorous analysis and cooperation can we lay the foundations for a more stable and just future. The Yearbook is based on the conviction that, despite this bleak outlook, there are tools for analysis, reflection and cooperation that allow us to imagine solutions and avoid resignation. It is not just a matter of recording the accumulation of crises, but of providing keys to understanding their interconnection and identifying avenues for more effective collective action. We trust that this edition of the Yearbook will contribute, in its modest way, to bringing us closer to that shared goal.