Paper Titles & Abstracts

Being members of the EU energy security community, Poland and Germany should be united by a high degree of mutual trust and sheared attitudes towards energy security threats. However, since 2004 Poland has had inflated, dogmatic and arguably prejudicial energy stance towards Russia, whereas Germany has been accused of having an interest-driven and overly pragmatic approach to energy security. This caused misunderstandings and misconceptions within the EU member states. The paper comprises a constructivist analysis of the differential meanings that Poland and Germany attach to energy (in)security, with Russia being an integral part of it. Focusing on the general perceptions of political elites in Warsaw and Berlin, the dialectics in the energy threat perceptions in Poland and Germany about Russia are explored. The paper concentrates on Polish and German mutual perceptions towards: (a) the construction of each other's energy identities in the EU; (b) the Nord Stream energy project and, (c) energy import dependence on Russian gas supplies. It is hypothesised that from 2004 until 2012 there was a gradual shift in Poland's anti-Russian energy security discourses towards more understanding and cooperative rather than antagonistic approach, coming to the level-playing field with Germany. The paper tests the extent of Russia representing the energy concern for both countries and what are the implications of their mutual energy perceptions for the EU-Russia energy relations.