European Union and Energy Security Challenges

Subject Areas : International Relations

Alireza Soltani ¹ (Faculty member and Professor of Political Science, Islamic Azad University Central Tehran Branch)
Reza Behmanesh ² (دانش آموخته کارشناسی ارشد مطالعات منطقه ای دانشکده علوم سیاسی دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی واحد تهران مرکزی)

Received: 2011-12-13 Accepted : 2012-01-18 Published : 2012-04-03

Keywords: energy, Russia, Key Words:European Union, Central Asia and the Caucasus, Nabucco,

Abstract :

Abstract: Energy, and the issues related to it, are among the most important topics in the European Union. Among the most central concerns in the European Union are the prospects for the provision and transfer of energy to Europe’s industries and economy. The existence of realities such as the increasing rate of energy consumption and the consequent rise in the Union’s dependence on fossil fuel imports, have all led to the European Union’s concerns regarding energy supply and security. Such a noteworthy dependence has drawn the attention of the European Union towards the adoption of common and long-term policies for reducing the risks  and challenges surrounding energy security. The European Union’s concerns regarding Russia’s economic and political hegemony over energy resources in Central Asia and the Caucasus, have resulted in the Union’s quest for diversifying the routs used for the transfer of its energy and gas. Therefore, the Nabucco project which is one of the European Union’s projects concerning the diversification of suppliers of gas to the Union’s members, should be examined in the framework of the mentioned discourse. The main question raised by this article is that why European Union have followed diversifying its energy resources in recent years? The article is based on this hypothesis that the EU concerns regarding Russian monopoly on energy resources of Central Asia and Caucasus has led this block to diversify its energy resources and Nabucco Pipeline is one of its recent projects and routes for fulfilling this goal and reducing the risks and challenges for energy security.    

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