TRANSFORMING IMEC IN RESPONSE TO THE IRAN WAR - Join he Atlantic Council’s Project on Middle East Integration for a panel discussion on how the Iran war and its associated threats have highlighted the need for new trade alternatives and corridors.

The Iran war is disrupting the balance of power across the Middle East while underscoring the need to rethink the flow of energy and goods across the region. The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) initiative has the potential to facilitate new trade corridors, but to do so it must adapt to a changing Middle East and overcome both political and practical hurdles.

This panel will discuss a new Atlantic Council report arguing that a network approach to IMEC could better position the initiative to provide alternatives to vulnerable waterways like the Strait of Hormuz. The panel brings together government and private sector leaders engaged on IMEC to discuss the hurdles facing the initiative, whether a network approach to IMEC could overcome those hurdles, and other steps IMEC governments can take to promote more resilient trade routes across the Middle East.

ORIGINAL AIRDATE - 07/28/2026