ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on Russia's evolving, bilateral approach to energy issues in Southeastern Europe, as part of the overall strategy towards the EU and as a tool of enhancing Moscow's political influence and extract large revenues from European markets. It describes the rise of Russia's novel approach in this field, roughly dating from 2003, and then turn to the specific conditions of energy demand and supply on the Balkan Peninsula. The chapter analyses Russia's evolving activities towards the region and its repercussions on European Union (EU) ambitions to forge a unified policy. At the end, it discusses the prospects that the Union will be able to either thwart Russian bilateralism in that important region, or at least embed Moscow's approach within a wider policy that would render it compatible with the EUs strategic needs and preferences.
