The role of hydrocarbons in the geopolitical scenarios of the euro-mediterranean energy security after the 'Arab Spring'

摘要

The Mediterranean Region plays a global geopolitical role, is a bridge between the Arab world and the EU and enjoys an unique global position with some most remarkable geostrategic junctions (as the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar) and an open access to the Black Sea through the Turkish Straits. But it is composed of countries that show a significant variety in their level and path of economic growth rate and other economic fundamentals. This diversity is mirrored by the energy landscape of the region, where key hydrocarbon suppliers, transit countries and net energy importing countries coexist. Consequently, energy policy in the Mediterranean area is characterised by a composite set of technical, economic and geopolitical factors that contribute to determine a multifaceted scenario. The popular uprisings in early 2011 in North Africa and the Middle East (MENA) have engraved deeply on this scenario, producing a negative impact on the Euro-Mediterranean cooperation and raising serious questions about the EU policy towards the Region. Particularly significant was the impact on the energy cooperation, that is one of leading Euro-Mediterranean geopolitical ad geoeconomic challenges, which involves the issues of energy security and diversification of energy sources. The negative effects have focused on various aspects of the Euro-Mediterranean energy cooperation and on related projects, including: development of complementarity and the implementation of transport infrastructure in the hydrocarbons sector.