Turkey and the EU in an Energy Security Society: The Case of Natural Gas

 

 

 

In Turkey and the EU in an Energy Security Society: The Case of Natural Gas, Dicle Korkmaz investigates Türkiye and the European Union’s (EU) energy ties in the context of natural gas. Korkmaz’s Ph.D. thesis serves as the foundation for the book. The book examines data gathered through interviews and EU and Turkish sources through narrative policy analysis. The objective of this book is to comprehend whether the positions of Turkish actors on energy security in the sector of natural gas impede or facilitate EU integration. On one hand, the book helps us better understand where the different actors in Türkiye want to put the country in the panEuropean energy community when it comes to natural gas, and how much this position matches what the EU needs. On the other hand, it explores EU viewpoints on Türkiye’s energy security posture to analyze the type of collaboration the EU seeks with Türkiye in the natural gas sector.

The book is organized in six chapters, including an introduction and a conclusion. In the first chapter, the author briefly analyzes European energy security and Türkiye’s geopolitical position based on primary sources. In this section, the author provides an explanatory overview of the book’s chapters and the theoretical framework she will employ. In chapter 2, the general theoretical and methodological frameworks of the book are discussed in greater detail. Buzan’s structural explanation is presented first, and then the debate moves on to how this understanding applies to energy. This chapter provides definitions of some of the most vital concepts, such as natural gas energy security and energy security society, and discusses the various forms of integration that are possible within the latter. Moreover, the chapter covers the fundamental institutions and seeks to establish the institutional structure of a society oriented toward energy security. Consequently, it describes the concept of sovereignty, energy diplomacy, the balance of power, the market, state capitalism, and demand and supply security. Tables and figures were used by the author to illustrate the connections between these concepts and the theoretical framework, making the theoretical framework more comprehensible.

The chapter 3 puts the energy security society’s theoretical basis into perspective before going into great depth on the kind of integration the EU wants to achieve with Türkiye in the natural gas sector. This chapter aims to provide an answer to the issue of what kind of natural gas cooperation the EU anticipates with Türkiye. Data collected from January 2001 to July 2019 was used to examine the perspectives of various EU actors regarding the significance of Turkish energy security for Europe. Understanding the extent to which the narratives of Turkish actors align with EU narratives can be accomplished by examining the fundamental institutions in EU narratives and assessing the type of integration the EU intends to achieve with Türkiye. In this part, numerical data supports Europe’s growing energy dependence, and the significance of Russian gas is emphasized. In addition, Korkmaz underlined the primary objectives behind the European Union’s natural gas policies toward Türkiye. By emphasizing the significance of the Southern Gas Corridor in this setting, the primary role of Türkiye in ensuring energy security was highlighted.

In chapter 4, Korkmaz determines how the Turkish actors view the narratives that the EU has on diversification. The book claims that this could be accomplished most effectively by analyzing the Turkish narratives that have been presented regarding the Southern Corridor. At the beginning of the chapter, there is an investigation of the various actors’ perspectives on how to define the energy security concept. This analysis ensures a wealth of information regarding how the various actors view the energy security problem as well as how they intend to tackle it. In the following section of the chapter, an analysis of the Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) narrative about pipelines, which is constituted by the balance of power, is described. Furthermore, a comprehensive analysis was carried out to find out the impact that natural gas pipelines passing through Türkiye would have on the country’s ability to maintain its natural gas supply and its position in the Eastern Mediterranean.

In chapter 5, the author provides an in-depth analysis of the primary points of contention between liberal and state capitalist narrators regarding the benefits of liberalization. In addition to providing an examination of important institutions, this chapter illustrates how fundamental supporting institutions such as great power management, the balance of power, and sovereignty operate. It analyzes the workings of other supporting institutions and identifies the roles that market capitalism and state capitalism play in Turkish narratives. The Natural Gas and Transit law is used in this section to discuss the many legal aspects of energy security.

The final chapter summarizes the study’s findings, both theoretical and empirical. There are two findings in the book. Firstly, considering the Turkish narrative’s political implications, the AK Party’s view of transit pipeline projects as instruments that will help Türkiye’s objective of becoming an influential center country in the energy market requires cooperation with all actors, including Russia and the EU. In bringing natural gas to Europe, Türkiye has embraced a collaborative strategy. Secondly, the EU’s aim of supplier diversification and Türkiye’s aim of guaranteeing supply security provide a solid foundation for collaboration in the natural gas industry.

The book provides major contributions to the literature, including theoretical and empirical. In the literature geopolitics, economics, and environmental studies are frequently used as a theoretical framework to explore issues relating to energy. This book strives to draw a distinct theoretical framework from the more prevalent geopolitical approaches. To understand the energy security relationship that exists between Türkiye and Europe, the author addressed the issue with Buzan’s structural interpretation, which made use of one of the international relations theories, the English School. Based on Buzan’s approach, Korkmaz utilizes the concept of an energy security society. The author’s goal in using this concept is to improve our understanding of society by using primary institutions. The book’s second addition to the literature stems from its inquisition into the attitudes of different Turkish players on energy security in the context of natural gas cooperation with the EU. This book analyzes in detail the stance of the actors involved. It offers energy researchers a comprehensive examination of Turkish and European energy supply security.