Ukraine – russia War, Energy Policy and Role of USA

Abstract

The energy factor has always played a major role in international relations and it is a fact that it implements an important role in the defense of national interests, as well as in the fulfillment of numerous strategic plans. In the first half of the 20th century, which culminated in the Second World War, the concept of energy security was closely linked to the supply of fuel for military purposes. The biggest problem for energy security within the 20th century and the first two decades of the 21st century was the protection of oil and gas supplies and delivery. This problem is now, related to the aggression of Russia against Ukraine.
Taking into consideration the importance of the energy security policy of the US in the framework of USA-EU relations and
strengthening the Trans-Atlantic links between American and European partners with the purpose to oppose the imperialistic ambitions of Russia, the transportation of natural gas from the US to Europe and other regions of the world in the light of the Russia-Ukraine war and by this way, the reduction of dependence on Russian oil and gas in Europe has made the issue actual. For the European countries, it is important to get away from Russia's energy influence and so far, it is trying to find alternative sources of energy imports and increasing the share of non-traditional sources of energy within the energy balance of the EU and other European states.
On one side is Russia, which is trying to maximize its energy resources for the realization of its geopolitical interests. Particularly, after the embargo on Russian oil and oil products and the significant decreasing the volume of Russian gas export to the EU market, Kremlin tries to increase the export of oil and gas to alternative markets, first of all to China and India. It should not be forgotten, that in 2014, the Crimean Peninsula was annexed by Russia, and together with other factors one of the reasons was that there (on the Black Sea coast of Ukraine) are located important deposits of shale gas. On the other side is the United States of America, which has been intensively cultivating the shale gas deposits in recent years and intensively increasing oil production. However, it is worth mentioning that the transportation of the above-mentioned natural resources in Europe is quite a problematic issue due to its geographical location.
Keywords: Energy, EU, Gas, Oil, Russia, Security, Trans-Atlantic Links, USA.