The 2016 EuroMeSCo Annual Conference, co-organised with EGMONT – The Royal Institute for International Relations, gathered 150 recognised experts and policy-makers to debate the current security situation in the region and reflect on ingredients, formats, stakeholders and actions for a greater and more effective cooperation to address security challenges.

The conference, held at a critical juncture of Euro-Mediterranean relations, aimed at contributing to the debate in the final stretch before the release of the EU Global Strategy on Foreign and Security Policy.

The debates constituted a valuable contribution to the mapping of the main threats in the Mediterranean region and offered interesting insights on how the security order in the region should be reviewed in order to address them. The position of the European Union as an actor in the region and the impact of domestic challenges on its external leverage were also debated.

In addition to the plenary sessions, three “thematic sessions” offered in-depth analyses of the multidimensional security threats and challenges in the region, including the hard security threats, the impact of domestic political and economic developments on the stability of states in the region, and the energy and environmental challenges.