ABSTRACT
Oil price volatility, fears of instability in the Middle East and other energy-producing regions, anxiety about a looming ‘peak oil’ and concerns about global warming have moved energy security to the top of the international political agenda. Oil in particular has evolved from being the world’s most important traded commodity to a powerful tool in the political and economic relations among countries: whether a country produces oil and gas for the global market or must rely on fuel imports, energy helps define its position in international politics.1
