This essay maps the security policy consequences of Russia's export of gas and oil to Europe in the years 2014–2022. The essay analyzes the development of the EU's energy policy, which dealt with energy transitions. The author also examines changes in the Russian Federation's security policy, military thinking, and military spending, as well as EU actions directed at Russia. The source material consisted of digital and printed sources that were processed using the deductive and qualitative method. To interpret the sources and create the narrative, the Peak Oil theory of M. King Hubbert, Benedict Anderson's theory of nationalism and the groupthink theory of Irving Janis were used. The results of the survey confirm previous research that emphasizes the importance of cheap energy for a modern society. The survey confirms that energy transitions do not occur in a blink of an eye, as well as the claim that the countries that import gas and oil become dependent on the countries that export these fossil fuels. The survey results show that the security policy situation in Europe has become worse during the period 2014–2022. The war in Ukraine can be seen because of Russia's changed military thinking and security policy, as well as the EU's inability to use powerful sanctions against Russia. During the same period, the EU underwent an energy transition and was extremely dependent on oil and gas imports from Russia. The results of this essay show that Russia's policy was primarily driven by geopolitical ambitions, namely, to make Russia a great power. Incorporation of Ukraine was seen as one of the intermediate goals. The sanctions used by the EU had little or no effect. What could affect Russia's ability to continue the war was a total boycott of Russian oil and gas. The essay's results provide a clear indication of the consequences of an ill-conceived energy policy. The result also shows how geopolitics, power and economics are connected and can affect humanity both locally and globally. The research results offer a broad field for further research in the energy sector, historical and political geography.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-125393 |
| Date | January 2023 |
| Creators | Kourinnoi, Igor |
| Publisher | Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för kulturvetenskaper (KV) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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