Browsing by Author "Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja"

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Cooperation in the energy security sector: a case study of the prospective EU-Azerbaijan natural gas trade
(Tartu Ülikool, 2019) Kaldmaa, Kristjan; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
European Union’s growing natural gas import dependence, high dependency on Russia’s gas and depletion of own intra-EU gas reserves has made EU look towards diversification of suppliers like Azerbaijan. Considering that nowadays energy ground involves various topics, neoliberalism with the help of international political economy liberal approach is used to explain EU energy security. For the analyse, considering the fuzziness of energy security concept, three energy security components reliability, affordability and sustainability are used, with applied indicators, to evaluate Azerbaijan’s fit. This thesis tries to analyse potential fit to EU energy ground, at the same time considering, that there is no gas trade between Azerbaijan and Baku. The thesis finds, that Azerbaijan fits good enough to EU energy security framework, but other factors are involved. The reliability of supply dimension gives Azerbaijan a positive outlook for being a supplier, yet while gas trade will improve cooperation and mutual benefit, the potential risk on transit is high due to Russia’s influence and interests in the region. Affordability dimension finds, that Azerbaijan’s gas is affordable for the EU market and has been less volatile in price fluctuation, but is still highly dependent on oil prices. But the prices are expected to rise and will rise Azerbaijan’s motivation towards EU market. Sustainability dimension finds that EU will benefit from Caspian import and by 2040 EU gas production has fallen almost three times, whereas Azerbaijan’s production has increased by almost three times. Due to potential increase in future gas flows, it serves EU’s aims to increase environmentally friendlier gas share in energy mix, which is seen as a bridge towards renewable energies. The thesis finds that through Azerbaijan’s gas export, EU’s energy security ground will benefit from supplies and diversification, while opening up new markets in the Caspian region and Middle East through Southern Gas Corridor.
The EU energy policy image dynamics in relation to the external crisis: evidence from 5th and 6th European Commission terms
(Tartu Ülikool, 2020) Shipina, Ekaterina; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Glahn, Cosima, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
The master thesis explores the EU energy policy agenda change by analyzing legislative preparatory documents prepared by the European Commission in the period between September 2009 and November 2019. This period covers the two legislative cycles of the EU that changed in 2014 and coincided with the major external event – Crimea annexation followed by the warmongering in Eastern Ukraine. Multiple Streams Framework and Punctuated Equilibrium Theory was combined as a theoretical framework, according to which the agenda change is caused by the external event. However, the nature of agenda change depends on the policy problem interpretation by the main policy entrepreneur. Therefore, the paper uses the mixed methodology that combines computational text analysis and qualitative interpretation of the results in order to structurally explore the content of the EU energy policy agenda and its change in relation to the external crisis. So, the thesis concludes that the EU energy policy image has a multifaceted character consisting of five main dimensions: economic, environmental, security, foreign affairs, and procedural ones. The paper also contributes to the understanding of the policy agenda change: the shift happens in parallel with the change of problem definition given by the policy entrepreneur – the European Commission.
Finding the balance between political and economic interest: a qualitative analysis of corporate self-regulation in the petroleum industry in the case of Nord Stream 2
(Tartu Ülikool, 2018) Schmalz, Julia; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
In absence of traditional state regulation, corporations choose to self-regulate their behavior at times. Caring for the environment, initiating social projects, fighting modern slavery; the list of voluntary corporate initiatives is quite extensive. However, the motivation behind these commitments often remains obscure as can be seen in the case of the petroleum industry. Petroleum corporations extensively pollute the environment with their products and, at the same time, promise to contribute to its long-term protection. This research seeks to address the question why petroleum corporations decide to self-regulate in the first place and how they select the commitments appropriate to their business. Based on the psychological concept of self-regulation, the case study of the research examines the self-regulatory behavior of the corporations involved in the gas pipeline project Nord Stream 2: the executing corporation Nord Stream 2 AG and the investing corporations Uniper, OMV, Wintershall, ENGIE, and Shell. The qualitative analysis supports the hypotheses that (1) corporate self-regulation occurs as a consequence of tension between external political interest and internal financial interest and (2) petroleum corporations self-regulate with a strong focus on the energy transition and environmental protection. The empirical findings align with the literature review in criticizing the lack of appropriate quantitative measurements and sanctions concerning non-compliance with voluntary commitments. The voluntary commitments remain fragile with the corporations having absolute authority over their own self-regulation governance and little incentive to improve their transparency. However, best self-regulatory practice is being showcased by ENGIE’s commitment to the issuance of green bonds. By raising funds for environmentally sustainable projects through the green bonds market, ENGIE reacts to both external political pressure deriving from the energy transition and the corporate objective of profit maximization. The research concludes by pointing out that self-regulation in form of green bonds constitute an opportunity to both address the much-discussed credibility problem of the petroleum industry and serve a new and growing ESG market.
Media's Role in Transition to Democracy: Estonia and Chile
(Tartu Ülikool, 2017) Üleoja, Paula; Mertelsmann, Olaf, juhendaja; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Humanitaarteaduste ja kunstide valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Ajaloo ja arheoloogia instituut
The reshaped economic relations between Russia and Turkey after Western economic sanctions
(Tartu Ülikool, 2019) Günes, Dilan; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
Economic sanctions as a foreign policy tool is used by sender countries to change policy or behavior of a target country. The economic sanctions are multilevel phenomena that not only affects both sides of the action but also have implications for third parties, reshaping the political and economic relations of the sender and target countries with the other states. The effects of the economic sanctions imposed by the West on Russia and Turkey have direct implications for the balance of power in the region and globally. Therefore, this paper aims to examine how did economic sanctions (re)shape the economic relations between Russia and Turkey. In doing so, the paper applies explanatory sequential mixed methods. First, logarithmic regression model was conducted by time series data over the period ranging from 1992 to 2018. The paper confirms that economic sanctions imposed on target countries that already have trade relations increase the bilateral trade between them, especially for Turkish case. Subsequently, content analysis was conducted reviewing annual data starting from 1992 but mostly focusing on 2014-2018 period. The analysis shows that because the sender countries are important trade partners in the target countries, to counterbalance the effects of economic sanctions target countries choose to diversify their trade. According to the results, Russia diversified towards Asia and Central Asia while Turkey increased its trade with the EU which is mutual ally of the US and Turkey. Excluding the 2015 plane crisis between Russia and Turkey, the Western sanctions imposed on both countries increased the bilateral trade between them. However, these two countries are the first choice of each other when it comes to trade partner diversification.
Securitization of energy relations by Poland, Latvia, Denmark and Sweden: the building of Nord Stream 2
(Tartu Ülikool, 2018) Rutkovska, Hanna; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut
Over the past years, discussion concerning enhancing t he security of supply and avoiding the fragmentation of EU gas market have a dominated place on the agenda of the European Commission, chaired by Jean-Claude Juncker. In this light, the proposal of the new pipeline, Nord Stream 2 has raised a couple of controversial questions. It led to a new tension within an EU-level regarding forming the two blocs, r espectively s upporters and opponents of the gas project. The thesis aims to provide the analysis of the four Member States that have voiced against t he building of the pipeline. The chosen countries consider the Nord Stream 2 project as a political tool which might divide the EU inside and ensure the Russian dominance in the European energy market. In such a situation, the particular Member States stands on blocking it to prevent the inevitable consequences. The research outlines the common stance on the gas offshore by analysing the speech acts of Member States' political leaders. According to the Copenhagen School, the thesis disputes t he degree of s ecuritization which can b e gained in the particular energy issue. Primarily, the study delves into the initial stage of the securitization known as a securitising movement. Hence, the securitising actors, their speech acts and referent objects are the essential elements of analysis. Functional actors such as Russia and Germany a re included in the research as well. Overall, the findings confirm the political significance of the energy relation in the context of t he construction of the pipeline and its effect on the further escalation of securitising movement.
The United States energy security: shale revolution viability in the context of implemented sustainable development and environmental stewardship dimension
(Tartu Ülikool, 2018) Zakirov, Ildar; Pataccini, Leonardo, juhendaja; Tartu Ülikool. Sotsiaalteaduste valdkond; Tartu Ülikool. Johan Skytte poliitikauuringute instituut