An Upstream Battle: The EU and the Reform of the Energy Charter Treaty

The changes undergoing global energy markets and the structure of the world economy over the past decade have placed the energy charter treaty (ect), so far the most widespread international regime on energy trade and investments, in a difficult situation. The withdrawal of russia in 2009 led the ect to a standstill, obliging the institution to reassess its future. This chapter enquires into how the eu, the main driving force behind the creation of the ect, has dealt with this growingly unpropitious context. It finds that, quite paradoxically, the eu has chosen the path of entrenchment over accommodation. The chapter argues that both normative factors (inertia of ingrained policy philosophies and practices) and cognitive (perception of regional ascendancy) have inhibited the eu’s disposition to accommodate.keywordsforeign policymodernisation processrussian governmentprovisional applicationarbitral tribunalthese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.