EU Energy Security After Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine – Substance, Strategy and Lobbying

Abstract

The energy supply of individual countries and international organisations plays a key role for economic development. Energy is a specific good, where access to it must be stable and uninterrupted. The functioning of any country’s economy depends on a well-functioning energy sector, but unfortunately, over recent years, newer and newer threats to energy security have been emerging, in addition to the consumption of scarce natural resources. These include not only uncertain and unstable suppliers, but also natural disasters and cyber-attacks to which energy networks are increasingly exposed. Over the last few years, the issue of energy security has also become increasingly important in the EU. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, this policy acquired an entirely new dimension as the turbulence in EU energy markets contributed to significant economic difficulties including, among other factors, rising inflation in all EU Member States. Since then, the main priority of the EU’s energy policy has become the security and stability of energy supply. The aim of this article is to present and assess the effectiveness of the main EU measures taken to improve the EU’s energy security following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. These actions are extremely important to ensure long-term energy security in the EU, so it is essential that only the EU’s interests are taken into account. The article also highlights the dangers of the fossil fuel lobby and their influencing the EU’s decision-making process on energy security.

Keywords

• energy security
• eu
• lobbying
• european green deal
• repowereu
• fit for 55