Strategic Partnerships under Pressure: Rewiring Euro-Mediterranean Cooperation in an Age of Global Competition — this was the theme of the EuroMeSCo 2026 Annual Conference, held at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in Larnaca, Cyprus, from 4 to 6 June 2026.

The conference was organised by the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) in cooperation with the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) Cyprus Centre, and with the financial support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).

The event brought together around 70 participants from 28 countries from the EuroMeSCo network, including representatives of think tanks, academic institutions, governments, civil society organisations and EU institutions, to discuss the common political challenges facing the Euro-Mediterranean region.

The conference took place at a moment when the global order is becoming increasingly competitive, fragmented and interconnected, with geopolitical rivalries extending into trade, connectivity, infrastructure and technology. In this context, the Euro-Mediterranean region is marked by growing interdependence, shifting partnerships, and rising security, energy and migration challenges. Against this backdrop, participants explored future scenarios for Euro-Mediterranean cooperation and developed practical policy recommendations to strengthen regional governance and enhance the EU’s role in an international order profoundly shaped by conflict and geopolitical competition.

The newly released conference report captures the key takeaways from three days of intensive exchange. Across the sessions, participants underlined that regional cooperation cannot be separated from the conflicts and security dynamics reshaping the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North Africa, and that the EU’s credibility and influence will depend on combining technical cooperation with a coherent political strategy, consistent values and sustained engagement with a broad range of partners — including civil society — on both shores of the Mediterranean.

Read the full report below to explore the insights that experts discussed in the 2026 Annual Conference.