The notion of 'economic security' has emerged as a core trade and industrial policy justification and as a guiding objective for a rapidly expanding set of trade, investment and regulatory instruments. The panel will explore how this concept reshapes legal frameworks, enforcement practice and international economic relations. Some of the key questions we will explore are:

• Key impact and implementation areas – inbound and outbound investment screening, foreign subsidy control, trade defence tools, and and their interaction in practice;
• Trade pacts, tariff measures, divestment obligations and other market access tools concerning 'critical sectors' (critical raw minerals, semiconductors, data centres, pharmaceuticals, defence, steel and aluminium). Is there an end to this list, and who defines what is 'critical'?;
• Does export control, investment screening and sanctions policy fit into the 'economic security' concept, and where are the legal and conceptual boundaries between military, dual use and emerging technologies (AI, data, quantum)?;
• How does 'economic security' fit within international economic law – WTO agreements, investment treaties, arbitration practice and Free Trade Agreements – and how are security exceptions tested in practice?; and
• Is economic security becoming the new normal of global economic governance, or will legal, political and diplomatic constraints force a recalibration?