Abstract
Energy security constitutes one of the important issues in international relations in shaping world politics and has a strategic importance in the economic decision-making processes of countries. Ensuring energy security in various geographies of the world is of vital importance not only in the region but also in terms of international balances. Therefore, states can access energy resources without any risk to transfer energy safely. After reaching reasonable and practical energy sources, they struggle to achieve energy access without changing governments or regimes. Safe energy transfer is essential for sustainable economic development. In this direction, two factors gain importance in energy security. The first is the increasing energy needs of developed countries, as well as the increase in energy consumption of rapidly developing countries such as India and China and the re-regulation of the world energy balances, and the second is that a significant number of energy resources are located in countries that do not have a stable management, and the resulting is a security problem.
TopIntroduction
Energy is important for countries and people in economic, social and cultural life. Today, with the developing technology, the energy needs of countries are increasing and this situation can lead to competition and energy wars between countries. Countries spend a significant part of their income on energy resources such as oil, natural gas and electricity in order to maintain their sustainable development. For this reason, countries that do not have energy reserves have to come into contact with economic agreements or military interventions in countries with resources for their development. The root cause of past wars is often based on disagreements over the sharing of natural resources. In order to prevent these wars from happening today, these countries come together on a regional or international scale to ensure the security of their energy resources and energy corridors. As a matter of fact, the recent conflicts or wars in the Middle East are obtaining the natural resources they need through military interventions, both by destabilizing the Middle Eastern countries in question and because powerful western countries do not want to deplete their reserves.
Research Questions
- 1.
Are the energy games in Central Asia and the Middle East the only determining factor in the relations of the countries?
- 2.
Is the area of struggle in the strategies of the countries the control or the security of energy resources?
Purpose
Countries need energy to continue their development since the past. For this reason, the need for energy makes countries more and more dependent. Depending on the progress of addiction, the problem of security of energy resources also creates a field of competition between countries. Therefore, due to this field of competition, it is also reflected in the relations between countries in reaching energy.
The aim of this study is to investigate whether energy is the only determining factor in the relations between countries in the energy games in Central Asia and the Middle East, and whether the countries want to control or secure energy in the areas of struggle.
The Concept Of Energy And Energy Security
Energy is one of the indispensable elements of the development of all countries in the world. Therefore, as the sole element of the development of countries, energy and its security are of primary importance for countries today. For example, it is estimated that the world population will reach 10 billion in 2030 and 70% of the world's energy demand in 2030 will belong to developing countries. According to researches, it is stated that it will be difficult for 1. 4 billion people to reach energy in 2030 (MuteHgi, 2011). World total energy consumption, on the other hand, increased by approximately 93% between 1980 and 2012, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA, 2016). There is a relationship between access to energy and investment. Accordingly, investments in the energy field have increased over the years. According to the reports of the International Energy Agency, states invest 1. 6 billion dollars in the energy field every year, and this figure is predicted to increase to 200 billion dollars by 2035 (International Energy Agency, 2014).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Security: To be free from any threat or attack or to be ready for any threat or attack.
Geopolitics: It is the effect of the geography in which it is located and many direct or indirect factors that develop depending on it on the policy making of the states.
Energy: It is one of the policy-making tools in the development and development of human life and states.
Energy Security: According to the infrastructure of production, distribution, and transmission systems, it is a concept that includes many situations, from civil war to occupation, to the interruption that will be caused by a lack of investment in any terrorist attack.