Ocean under tension: the anatomy of maritime violence

9 dec | Cycle "Oceans: common heritage, shared challenges"
Tuesday
09
December
2025
6:30 pm
Vignette de la rencontre n°7 du cycle "Océans : héritage commun, défis partagés"
From piracy to the ecological crisis, plunge into the heart of the many forms of violence that threaten our oceans.

Seas and oceans are places of movement and exchange, but also places of tension, exploitation and conflict. Piracy, illegal trafficking, territorial disputes, exploitation of workers at sea, as well as marine pollution, over-exploitation of resources and destruction of ecosystems: maritime violence takes many forms, at the intersection of geopolitical, economic and ecological issues.

Sylvain Domergue, Professor of Geopolitics at Sciences Po Bordeaux, and Louis Borer, counter-terrorism analyst at RiskIntelligence, will explore the different facets of this violence, whether it directly affects human societies or the marine environment itself. By combining theoretical analysis and field perspectives, they will highlight the dynamics at play and look at ways of tackling these threats to the future of the oceans and those who depend on them.

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At the end of the discussion, you will have the opportunity to put any questions you may have to our guests. The meeting will be followed by a convivial moment.

About the Speakers

Sylvain Domergue is a graduate of the Ecole Normale Supérieure and holds a doctorate in Geography. Author of a thesis in 2022 on the regional construction of maritime security, he is continuing his work on the security governance of maritime spaces. A professor at Sciences Po Bordeaux, he is also a senior crisis analyst with the French Navy and the Armed Forces General Staff in Paris, and author of Géopolitique des espaces maritimes, published by Armand Colin in 2025.

Louis Borer est titulaire d'un master de la Sorbonne-Paris1/ENS, senior analyste en géopolitique maritime et capitaine de réserve dans la Marine nationale. Fort d’une expérience de trois ans auprès du Think Tank Asia Centre, et plus de six ans au ministère des Armées sur le GEOINT, le trafic d'armes en mer et le contre-terrorisme maritime, il est depuis trois ans analyste senior au sein du bureau d’étude danois RiskIntelligence. Il travaille essentiellement sur des problématiques de piraterie et de terrorisme maritime, de trafic de drogue en mer, et d’extension maritime des conflits.  

Louis Borer
© RiskIntelligence
Published at 11 March 2025