The EU’s Global Climate and Energy Policies: Gathering Momentum?

Somewhat unnoticed amidst the dramas of the eurozone crisis, the European Unionʼs (EU) global energy and climate policies appear to have gathered impressive momentum in the last three years. The EU has agreed a number of new documents that promise to strengthen Europeʼs presence in international energy policies. These include an EU ʻEnergy 2020ʼ strategy; a communication on external energy security; policy documents outlining a reinforced ʻclimate diplomacyʼ; and an ʻEnergy Roadmap 2050ʼ presenting scenarios for the next four decades. This raft of new initiatives was supplemented with strong EU performances at the last two United Nations climate change summits, in December 2011 and December 2012 respectively. Most recently, at the end of March 2013, the Commission published a green paper to begin consultations over a  framework for energy and climate policies up to 2030. The EU has rarely had such an intense period of advancement in the external dimensions of its energy policies.