ABSTRACT
The political and security dimensions of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regionalism have, until recently, been fairly muted. This is understandable given its economic integration origins. This Chapter looks at the evolution of ECOWAS Cease-fire Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) and the implications for ECOWAS regionalism, as well as, the regional and international dimensions of ECOMOG security regionalism in post-Cold War politics. The expansion of ECOWAS into the security domain was made possible by two crucial imperatives. The outbreak of the Liberian civil war and the response of the international community led to a new thinking in West Africa on how to address regional security and economic crises. The politics of economic regionalism had ensured ECOWAS preoccupation with regional political co-operation and confidence building especially in such areas as peaceful resolution of inter-state disputes and forging a common position on international affairs.
