The increasing intersection between economics and geopolitics was the focus of the panel discussion “Geoeconomics as the New Battlefield: Sanctions, Supply Chains, and Economic Statecraft in a Fragmenting World,” held within the framework of the Yerevan Dialogue 2026. The session explored how economic instruments are increasingly shaping global competition and international power dynamics.
Moderated by Viktoria Poghosyan, Director of External Affairs of Philip Morris of Armenia, the panel featured Nicolás Albertoni, Representative of the Center for Development Studies of Uruguay, Thomas Gomart, Director of IFRI of France, Rakhim Oshakbayev, Director of the Center of Applied Research TALAP of Kazakhstan, Matthew Wells, President and CEO of One Region, Inc. of the United States, and Eli Bar-On, Co-founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Head of the Executive Committee of MENA2050 of Israel.
Participants discussed the growing use of sanctions, export controls, trade restrictions, and financial instruments as key tools of contemporary statecraft. The discussion examined how global competition is increasingly unfolding through supply chains, technological ecosystems, and financial infrastructure rather than through traditional military confrontation alone.
Particular attention was devoted to the implications of the weaponization of economic interdependence, including its impact on global trade systems, supply chain resilience, and international institutions such as the World Trade Organization. Participants also explored how economic connectivity can serve both as a stabilizing factor and as a source of strategic leverage in international relations.
The discussion underscored that geoeconomics is becoming an increasingly defining feature of contemporary international relations, requiring states to adapt to a global environment in which economic policy and geopolitical competition are more interconnected than ever before.
