Pipeline Politics: An analysis of the EU’s actorness in the case of the Southern Gas Corridor

The purpose of this thesis is to answer the question ‘to what extent can the EU act geopolitically in the context of energy security and should it?’ through the case study of the Southern Gas Corridor. The academic debate on the EU’s actorness in international politics has been ongoing and the unique structure of the EU seems to still puzzle scholars. This has especially been the case in the field of energy policy, as energy is a strategic and public good and thus subject to a geopolitical dimension. By analyzing previous research in the field of EU energy policy, four possible answers to the research question were found. These are that the EU can or cannot and that the EU should or should not act geopolitically in the context of energy security. The four answers make up the spine of this thesis and guides the research into finding that the EU can act geopolitically to a certain extent, but still lacks full-fletched policy tools due to the nature of the energy policy area, and...Show moreThe purpose of this thesis is to answer the question ‘to what extent can the EU act geopolitically in the context of energy security and should it?’ through the case study of the Southern Gas Corridor. The academic debate on the EU’s actorness in international politics has been ongoing and the unique structure of the EU seems to still puzzle scholars. This has especially been the case in the field of energy policy, as energy is a strategic and public good and thus subject to a geopolitical dimension. By analyzing previous research in the field of EU energy policy, four possible answers to the research question were found. These are that the EU can or cannot and that the EU should or should not act geopolitically in the context of energy security. The four answers make up the spine of this thesis and guides the research into finding that the EU can act geopolitically to a certain extent, but still lacks full-fletched policy tools due to the nature of the energy policy area, and should act geopolitically to advance its strategic energy security agenda. The EU is essentially no less geopolitical than other actors but attempts to hide this within its rule-based regulatory framework.Show less

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Pipeline Politics: An analysis of the EU’s actorness in the case of the Southern Gas Corridor