The economic "shock" of the pandemic could aggravate crises on Europe's southern fringe, EU diplomats fear, amid other concerns on Israeli annexation.
"From a political perspective, the impact of the pandemic may exacerbate the many existing crises affecting the [Middle East and North Africa] region," the EU foreign service said in an internal report on 8 May, seen by EUobserver.
"The pandemic can only worsen things in the protracted Libya crisis", it said.
The Syria war ...
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Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.