Climate Security: The Politics of Corridorization in India-Middle East-Europe Corridor

Transregional connectivity initiatives have become pivotal not only to economic statecraft but also for enhancing political influence. States use infrastructure corridors as a strategic tool to shape trade flows, promote norms of governance, and showcase power externally. The G20 Summit held in 2023 announced India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC), marketed and labelled as a ‘green and digital bridge’ connecting South Asia, the Gulf, and Europe with multimodal transport, renewable energy, and digital trade platforms (Research and Information System for Developing Countries 2025). This research examines the climate security considerations that underpin IMEC within the contemporary discourse of green geopolitics. It explores how the decarbonization and diversification of energy can be framed as a security issue in their own right, rather than merely as environmental necessities. This research examines IMEC through the frameworks of minilateralism and corridorization, conceptualizing it as a layered governance assemblage of physical, energy and digital components. It explores whether these layers deliver concrete climate security co-benefits in the form of hydrogen supply chains, integrated electricity interconnectors, and enhanced digital trade. The findings indicate that IMEC reshapes corridorization by prioritizing hydrogen and renewable energy supply chains at the core, as a method to bypass chokepoints such as the Suez Canal and the Strait of Hormuz, and offer new connectivity options. However, significant challenges remain in terms of interoperability, digital sovereignty, and asymmetries in governance across regions. Promising resilience and diversification, IMEC reinforces the green securitization paradox, potentially leading to new dependencies and rivalries.