A Voice Out of the Chorus. Tunisia’s Position of the Middle East Question (1965–1985)

On the Arab scene, from 1956, independent Tunisia represented an important partner for the West, thanks also to its moderate political stance on the Middle East question. While this choice had placed Tunis on the fringes of the Arab League until the death of Nasser, it had also favored and strengthened its alliance with the West, first with the United States and then with the Western European countries that wished to open a dialogue with the Arab League. During the 1960s, Tunisia’s political role remained secondary to Nasser; it was with the Kippur War that the Palestinian question repositioned Tunisia in the Arab world. The signing of the Camp David Accords and the removal of Egypt from the Arab organization allowed Tunisia to take on a leading role in the Middle East question also thanks to the relocation of the PLO to the Maghreb country in 1982. Tunisia’s diplomatic and political success, however, was not painless. The presence of the Palestinian leadership on the outskirts of Tunis added an element of insecurity to an economic and social framework that was far from stable, with important repercussions on the end of Habib Bourguiba’s regime.