The Russia-Ukraine War and Energy Security: Impact and Policies, From a European Perspective

Abstract

Since February 2022, the conflict between Ukraine and Russia has exacerbated the global energy crisis resulting from COVID-19. The war has disrupted world energy trade and pushed energy prices surged significantly. This paper tends to analyse the effects of the war on energy security and policies and provide some feasible coping strategies, mainly from a European perspective. It is expected that the analysis of the issue could assist policymakers in combining short- and long-term strategies when making relevant energy policies. In summary, two possible energy policy directions from which European countries may choose involve focusing national energy security and accelerating energy transition. Nevertheless, this research suggest that it is better to combine short-term and long-term energy policies to mitigate current crisis and reduce energy vulnerability in future. Feasible energy strategies involve postponing the phase-out of coal, stricter conservation requirements in housing and transportation sectors, accelerating the deployment of renewable energy, increasing energy efficiency, and mandating obligation to increase energy storage. Moreover, EU member states should cooperate to respond to the current, otherwise, it will cause serious social and political issues.