There are, however, differences in political culture. Democracy is a delicate plant that needs to be constantly taken care of. Some are in a position to impart their hard-earned experiences in institution building and efforts have to be aimed towards channeling assistance in positive directions. Capping all this, multiethnic and multicultural societies are rapidly emerging in a number of European metropolis. Low fertility rates among erstwhile homogenous European nations are necessitating an immigration flow of people from poorer regions, especially from Eastern Europe and the Southern Mediterranean.
Further integration seems inevitable.
Dealing with the tensions that arise when societies shift their economic, social, cultural and ethnic orders will be the challenges of the decades to come. Compounded to all this are the new challenges arising from the unstoppable phenomenon of globalisation. Globalisation has added its share of challenges to those already there, challenges and opportunities that will shape our future. Here I am referring mainly to the challenge of the digital revolution and its implications in developing societies that will be able to cope with the speed of technological change and economic progress. It is apparent that if we analyse comprehensively this mare nostrum , it transpires that similarities abound, that the peoples living on its littoral share a common heritage built on an ancient trading and cultural history interspersed with periods of peace and conflict.