There is no doubt about the tense relations between EU and Russia and even more between NATO and Russia. There are many reasons for the deterioration of the respective relations. Unfortunately; the possible peace and cooperation dividend after the collapse of the Eastern Block and the Soviet Union has not been consumed. Too much has it been seen outside Russia as a victory of the "West", it's values, its economic system and its military force. Francis Fukuyama expressed it most clearly: we arrived at "The End of History". Even in Russia many agreed with that interpretation of history. But things developed differently.

The Mediterranean Sea was over many centuries characterized by movements of people and goods across the national borders of countries and across the sea. Some migratory movements were peaceful and contributed to trade and economic development. But many refugee flows were and are caused by conflicts, wars and occupations. Refugees tried to reach neighbouring countries like the vast majority of Palestinians or the "North" as especially today with many refugees from Syria and Iraq. The moving divisions and fault lines across the Mediterranean Sea and the different countries bordering that sea created again and again turmoil and chaos. But there were also periods of stability and peace.

In the last two and half years I visited professionally three sub-Saharan countries, besides a brief visit to South Africa: Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda and now again privately Tanzania. In spite of the private character of this last visit I had time and interest to consider the special challenges for African countries, most of them also challenges for Europe. And as with the Middle East - maybe more indirectly - peace and stability in Africa is helping to maintain peace and stability in Europe.

Peace in Europe depends strongly on war and peace in the Middle East. This has never been more clear and visible than after the terrorist attacks in Paris this November. Irrespective and independently from the recent refugee stream from Iraq and Syria we have to recognize the new level of interdependence. The links with the regions "south" of the Mediterranean Sea became so strong that a separation via new borders and walls is impossible. Such demands of the populists are leading nowhere.

No country can accept these attacks and must strike back. And all our sympathies are with the killed, the other victims and their families and certainly not with the killers. But at the same time we have to look at the root causes of these dreadful deeds in order to prevent further killings.

The Cuban "Centro de Investigacion sober Politica Internacional" (which is attached to a small University which is itself in close contact to the Cuban foreign ministry) has recently organized an international conference in Havana. The subject was the "geopolitical transformation between cooperation and conflict". Peter Stania and myself representing the Vienna International Institute for Peace (IIP) were invited to actively participate. I was given the task to speak primarily on the role of Europe and specifically of Central Europe in that context. In the following you find a summary of my talk. A more extensive report on my visits to Mexico and Cuba will follow in due time.