The Sahel Security Conundrum: Towards a New Equilibrium?

On June 11, 2024, the Program on Extremism at The George Washington University hosted the second of a series of two online events aimed at examining the security situation in the Sahel region. The year 2023 marked a turning point with the dissolution of key regional security and peacekeeping mechanisms, the withdrawal of major forces on the ground, democratic backsliding, and rising influence of new actors. To better understand the ongoing reconfiguration of the security landscape and its implications, this event aimed to analyze and contextualize these recent changes and explore the scenarios currently unfolding in the region.

In order to discuss these matters, the Program on Extremism hosted:

• Ulf Laessing, Head of Sahel Program at Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation,
• Beatriz de León Cobo, Conflict Advisor at First Call Partners and Director of Forum of Dialogue Sahel Europe (UFV-Madrid),
• Philippe van Amersfoort, Head of the Secretariat of the Partnership for Security and Stability in the Sahel (P3S), Directorate for Peace, Partnerships and Crisis Management, European External Action Service (EEAS).

The event was moderated by Program on Extremism Senior Fellow Sergio Altuna.