Munich Young Leaders 2026

From 12 to 15 February 2026, the 17^th cohort of the Munich Young Leaders (MYL) had the opportunity to participate in the 62^nd Munich Security Conference and engage in dialogue with high-ranking decision-makers and experts from around the world. Representing 20 countries across six continents, this year’s cohort brought a remarkable breadth of expertise and perspective to the conference.

The programme began on the first day with a background discussion with Boris Pistorius, Germany’s Federal Minister of Defence, on European defence, Germany’s rearmament efforts, and support for Ukraine. This was followed by a conversation with Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Head of the United Transitional Cabinet of Belarus, on the ongoing struggle for democracy and the realities of political exile. The MYL then met with Jean-Noël Barrot, France’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, who spoke with the group about European security, France’s role in supporting Ukraine, and the importance fighting disinformation online.

A conversation with Yoshua Bengio, a pioneering figure in artificial intelligence and head of the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms, offered insights into the risks and governance challenges of the AI race. The group also engaged with Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, and Chan Chun Sing, Singapore’s Minister for Defence, on questions of international order, pathways through protracted conflicts and wars, and the agency of states in a turbulent world. The cohort also had the opportunity to meet with Jens Stoltenberg, Norway’s Minister of Finance and Chairman-designate of the Munich Security Conference. The programme concluded with a meeting with MSC Chairman Ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger.

Throughout the main conference programme, the Munich Young Leaders also took an active role from the floor, asking questions across several panel discussions. Three cohort members, Khadija Yasmin Bokhari, Mohammed Fathelrahman Adam, and Hanna Liubakova, had the opportunity to join conference panels as speakers, representing the Munich Young Leaders on the main stage of the MSC.