CS Monitor: On energy, Europe looks to Ukraine and beyond
When the energy ministers of the G7 countries met in Rome last May, the Russian assault on Eastern Ukraine was in full swing. Europe and its allies were focused on energy security, an obvious preoccupation given the importance of Ukraine as a transit country for natural gas supplies to Europe. With that background, the ministers made an ambitious pledge to embark on a “step change to improve energy security at national, regional, and global levels.” They agreed on a fairly comprehensive set of principles and a plan of action to guide their work on a strategy that acknowledges energy security as “a collective responsibility” and “core component of our economic and national security.” The top energy officials of these countries, plus the European Commission, committed to collaborate closely to assist Ukraine in its reform efforts and to develop energy emergency plans for the 2014-15 winter.
On May 11-12 in Hamburg, the G7 energy ministers will meet again under the German G7 Presidency to take stock of their efforts over the past year and plot a course ahead. What can we expect? A certain amount of self-congratulation is in order. Ukraine and Europe survived the past winter with no disruption to natural gas supplies, the G7 partners are cooperating closely with Ukraine as President Petro Poroshenko undertakes the kind of deep energy and economic reforms that are essential to both turning around his country’s economy and to the energy security of Europe, and the launch of the EU’s Energy Union places a priority on a secure energy future for Europe.
With Russian aggression ongoing and still a long way still to go on Ukraine’s reforms, the G7 energy ministers will undoubtedly focus on ways to continue to strengthen Ukraine and their own near-term energy security. A broader look at natural gas security and the role of liquefied natural gas as new supplies come online from the United States and Australia would be welcome. Beyond assisting Ukraine, however, what can the G7 really accomplish in the energy space? These countries (including the EU as a whole, represented by the European Commission), account for a declining share of global energy consumption (about 37 percent now and headed lower). Without China and India at the table and buying in, how does energy security become truly “a collective responsibility?”
Read the full article HERE