Italy, Russia and the Great Reconfiguration in East–West Energy Relations

Abstract

Italy is the second largest market for Russian gas in the EU, and Italy–Russia energy relations stretch back to the Cold War period. By developing an original framework for the study of the politics of producer–consumer cooperation based on an international political economy approach and the analytical concept of forms of state, this article examines the origins, evolution and current features of Italy–Russia dyadic energy relations. This analysis, in turn, offers an important contribution to the study of EU–Russia relations and sheds light on the reconfiguration of East–West gas interdependence within the context of the integration and liberalisation of the EU energy sector.