Azerbaijan as energy pivot to the European energy security
Filenta, Martha-Maria
European energy security has appeared to the forefront in the political agenda of EU the last decades, because of external stimuli such as Russia. The present thesis elaborates the challenges and objectives of the European external energy policy. In the diversification call of energy supply and routes, Azerbaijan is presented as an important strategic partner for Europe and therefore their interdependent relationship is outlined. The main argument of this thesis is to highlight the non existence of a common European external energy policy and its outcomes in order to conclude to the importance of energy rich Azerbaijan concerning the EU- Russian intense competition in the Caspian basin. The research is based on qualitative method and a theoretical framework so as to conduct the above analysis. The theoretical framework embraces Liberal Intergovernmentalism, a theoretical school of integration theories. Andrew Moravcsik’s work will be used as the theoretical basis to understand and make clear how European Union works and why a common external energy policy is extremely difficult to achieve since the economic interests are diverse.
