Abstract (eng)
After the USSR’s collapse, the countries of Central Asia started to cooperate also with
countries other than Russia, like China, Turkey and the USA. These countries are
particularly interested in the region’s energy resources. The EU’s increasing demand for
energy resources is leading to a stronger relationship between the two regions. In 2007,
the EU and five countries of Central Asia – i.e. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – adopted the document “The EU and Central Asia:
Strategy for a New Partnership”. In the framework of this strategy, the regions are
cooperating in different fields. This study deals with the field of energy security and
examines the relationship between the EU and Central Asia using a rationalist approach.
In doing so, it deals with the question of how the EU’s foreign policy works. Making
reference to the European Neighbourhood Policy and the EU Strategy for Central Asia,
the EU’s foreign policy is elucidated in detail. Furthermore, this study also describes the
development of the relationship between the EU and Central Asia in order to show that
the EU has only been attempting to intensify its cooperation with the Central Asian
region as of 2007, i.e. since the adoption of the EU Strategy for Central Asia. In
particular, the EU’s measures in the field of energy are illustrated in this context.
Moreover, this study examines in detail how three countries rich in natural resources,
i.e. Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, have reacted towards the EU's policy in
the energy sector.