ABSTRACT
Since the 2000s, energy has moved from a peripheral topic to the core of academic debates about EU relations with Russia and has become central for understanding the interdependence between the EU and Russia. Indeed, developments of these relations have raised the question of why the EU and Russia, despite a high level of interdependence, have opted for a reciprocal self-exclusion from multilateral energy initiatives and have failed to agree upon a bilateral framework for energy cooperation. Recent developments in the EU towards decarbonisation open a new chapter of relations with Russia. From one side, addressing greenhouse gas emissions reduction would be crucial for reaching climate-neutrality in the continent and can become a window of opportunities for the EU and Russia to reconsider cooperation. From the other side, EU decarbonisation commitments will affect Russia’s carbon-intensive economy and its hydrocarbon export to Europe. This chapter provides an overview of how scholarship has tackled these issues so far. Discussing the contributions and shortcomings of studies, it offers a roadmap for a future research agenda.
