Understanding Central and East European Energy Security: Transition, Russia and the EU

The 2000s saw the return of energy security to the top of the international political agenda due to major geo-political and geo-economical shifts. In the case of Central and Eastern Europe, concerns regarding energy security, particularly those linked to supply and demand, became highly visible in the late 2000s during the two Russia-Ukrainian gas disputes, various controversies surrounding the construction of new pipelines and recently the 2014 Ukrainian crisis. As the EU seeks to consolidate and ensure energy solidarity, we have, in parallel, witnessed emerging divisions among the CEE countries in relation to their security of supply, diversification and interactions with Russia and its energy companies, as well as tensions between some CEE countries and the EU. This book panel brings together the authors of the forthcoming (2017) book Understanding Central and Eastern Europe Energy Security (Routledge: London) and sees them debate the key findings that emerged during the book's writing with discussants who will have seen advanced copies of the manuscript. The debate will (1) explore the interactions between domestic actors, Russian energy companies and the EU institutions in order to move beyond realist types of analysis of the CEE energy security, (2) analyse different governance structures within the energy sector of the CEE allows us to understand how they do, or do not, provide a conducive environment for Russian presence and influence, (3) highlight the post-communist transformation and its legacies, the emerging post-socialist elites in the CEE region, the politics of private and state-owned energy companies in the CEE states and the move to liberalize the energy systems of the region as part of the European integration agenda.