Enemies with benefits? : A case study of Germany and Nord Stream 2

Abstract: The fossil gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 between Russia and Germany has caused massive criticism in the West. At first sight, it appears paradoxical that Germany, an influential member of NATO and the EU, approves more dependence on an increasingly assertive Russia. This, recently after launching an extensive green transformation of its energy system. The grand theories of IR struggles to get a firm grip of the case. This master thesis explores how the political line can be understood, and what it tells us about German foreign policy in a broader context. The study is carried out as a case study, mapping the material circumstances of supply and demand of natural gas, as well as looking into the domestic and international actors involved. Theoretically, the concept of geo-economics is deployed combined with the analytical pair of logic of appropriateness and consequence in decision-making, with the aim to achieve theoretical sensitivity. The premiss of the analysis is that energy security is existential for modern industrialized states and thereby rather obligatory to solve for political leaders to solve. In the specific case do natural gas occupy relative benefits that makes it favourable for Germany. Depleting resources of gas, crummy alternatives, and the historical and present conditions of interdependence, has become evident as key variables behind the decision-making. However, the argument is also made that the specific decision says relatively little about the general democratic and multilateral objectives of Germany. Hence, Nord Stream 2 should be analysed in the light of the unique nature of energy politics and the case specific circumstances. The conclusion is that the political line of Germany regarding Nord Stream 2 should be understood as driven by the pursuit of energy security, in combination with a range of case specific, mostly material, circumstances.