On 11 March the OSCE Academy's Associate Research Fellow Tamás Kozma delivered a public lecture on "Turkmen Natural Gas in the European Energy Security Discourse: Perceptions, Outlooks, Realities." Throughout the lecture Mr. Kozma offered a reality check on the future possibilities of EU-Turkmen gas relations and shed light on the possible policy options aiming at bringing the mutual interest in export and import diversification into fruition. He equally pointed out the main challenges in regard to possible Turkmen gas deliveries to Europe. During the lecture Mr. Kozma assessed the EU-Turkmen natural gas relations in the context of the European Union’s official energy security discourse in general, and in the framework of the EU’s supply diversification endeavours in particular. In addition to that, he elaborated on the profound transformation Turkmenistan’s natural gas export structure has been undergoing in the past decade.
The lecture was followed by a feedback round and questions from participants. Among many other issues the discussion raised questions such as Russia’s reaction to the potential export of Turkmen gas to the EU in light of the current strained geopolitical relations, as well as Turkey’s position towards channeling Turkmen gas exports through its territory, and the economic and political costs for Europe in this context.
Video recording of the lecture is available at: https://youtu.be/6DWN1dFW58o
Bio:
Tamás Kozma is OSCE Academy Associate Research Fellow since November 2018. He heads the Asian and African Relations Office of the Antall József Knowledge Centre, in Budapest, Hungary. Also, he is a doctoral candidate in Geopolitics at the University of Pécs. Obtained his BA and MA degrees in International Relations at the Corvinus University of Budapest. His primary research interest is energy geopolitics in Turkey, South Caucasus, Central Asia, and in the broader Middle East. His doctoral dissertation is focusing on Turkey’s energy policy aspirations, its participation in international energy projects, and its energy-based cooperation with different countries. Tamás Kozma’s articles are published by the Asian Journal of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, by Turkish Policy Quarterly, and also by a number of Hungarian journals and textbooks.