Energy Diplomacy and Security in the Age of Shale Gas Revolution
Importance of energy security
Energy today seems like the very essence of international politics. No overview of current world affairs is meaningful without an examination of the role played by energy. Energy producers, energy consumers, and energy transporters in any country become more important in accordance with the role they play. The study of world affairs requires an understanding of global energy dynamics. What happens above the ground, under the ground, or among nations contributes to the definition of peace and coexistence in various regions of the planet. By addressing questions of availability and the acquisition of energy we paint a complete picture of the situation throughout the world. When inquiries about energy have not been answered, nothing has been fully answered.
There are issues that need to be explored in relation to energy and its importance to world affairs. We can sketch out some of them, starting with the importance of the issues of security.
These are: Security from energy shortages, security from events above the ground, the security of energy transportation, security from financial turmoil, and European energy security.
1. Security from inadequate energy
It is of crucial importance for every sovereign nation to have guaranteed supplies of energy. Some are blessed with the ability to produce enough energy (oil or gas) supplies to satisfy their needs and export to others. These countries, apart from being energy sufficient, are also quite wealthy due to their ample resources. They do however face problems of their own. The availability of natural resources leads nations to serious economic problems. The inflow of foreign currency raises exchange rates, making any domestic products very expensive — thus hurting exports while imports become cheap and very attractive. In this way domestic industry suffers and consumers turn to foreign imported goods.
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