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China, energy, energy geopolitics, environmental debates, EU governance, infrastructure, international political economy, original post, resources

A COMPLEX GLOBAL ENERGY LANDSCAPE, CHINA’S ROLE, AND THE EU ENERGY TRANSITION​     As the world’s second-largest economy, China plays an important role in global energy affairs: Its economic trajectory profoundly affects fuel markets, while state-controlled companies have emerged as indispensable players in industries that provide vital inputs for building the future climate-neutral, electrified economy. In addition, for about two years the country has been coping with an economic crisis that the leadership has thus far failed to address decisively. Dependence on a dominant supplier with growing economic problems and a legacy of disregarding environmental concerns casts doubt on the premises of the EU energy and climate policy. How does China’s influence on the global energy system…

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book review #1

book review, EU governance, Germany

STEFFEM MAU, UNGLEICH VEREINT: WARUM DER OSTEN ANDERS BLEIBT [UNEQUALLY UNITED: WHY THE EAST WILL REMAIN DIFFERENT], 2024.       Droves of joyful people overran the Berlin Wall in November 1989, ending the physical separation of East-Germany, the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), from the much larger West-Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany. Supported by a majority in both parts of the country, reunification was negotiated and legally accomplished within only eleven months. The GDR acceded to the constitutional system of West-Germany, accepting and implementing a complex institutional setup. At that time, many thought that this was the best course of action. It guaranteed stability. Yet it also marginalised the grass-roots movement that had helped to defeat…

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article #1

China, energy geopolitics, EU governance, Germany, original post, Russia

EU ENERGY GOVERNANCE AS RISK GOVERNANCE: ADDRESSING GERMANY’S ILLUSIONS       The European Union established the Energy Union in 2015 to integrate energy and climate policies. Considering the bloc’s current geoeconomic situation as well as geopolitical challenges throughout the transition period related to choices on the path to a climate neutral economy, Germany’s positioning proves to be the weak link. Leading political actors are trying to prepare the ideational ground for a rapprochement with Russia, while the dependency on Chinese supplies to realise the energy transition is poorly  managed. How can instruments to govern the Energy Union help to address Germany’s reluctance to respond to changing international circumstances?       In recent years, the concept of…

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