| dc.description.abstract | This thesis seeks to explain what triggered cases of Russian energy aggression duringVladimir Putin's presidency. Previous studies on the subject have largely focused on singlecases or a small sample of cases, whereas this thesis has performed a comparative multiplecase study on 13 cases of Russian energy aggression in seven former Soviet Union republics(Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova and Ukraine). The thesis addresses theresearch question through an analysis of three hypotheses. The hypotheses are concerned withwhether economic interests, political considerations, or interest in energy infrastructuretriggered the cases of Russian energy aggression.The comparative analysis shows that although all three hypotheses to a varying degree explaintwo or more cases of Russian energy aggression, the relative merit of the hypotheses showsthat interest in energy infrastructure is the strongest explanatory variable. Nine out of 13 casesare primarily or secondarily explained by Russian interest in energy infrastructure. Thedissolution of the Soviet Union left Russia in a situation where it no longer controlled thedistribution network of oil and gas exports to Europe. The importance of oil and gas revenuesfor the Russian economy increased throughout Putin’s presidency, which led the Russian stateto exert energy aggression on neighbouring countries through state-controlled companies inorder to acquire ownership in their oil and gas infrastructure. | en_US |
