At February’s Munich Security Conference, Merz, Macron, von der Leyen and Co. testified to Europe's strength and independence. But concrete, independent strategies are often lacking. Europe now has the opportunity to play to its own strengths, including in the area of energy independence and sustainability.
The world is at war, and yet here they are talking about energy policy.
This sentiment was expressed more than once at this year‘s Munich Security Conference – both off the record and openly in social media posts. And it was spot on; between the main sessions on defence, there were numerous side events on renewable energies, European electricity grids, and critical raw materials.
This was a logical choice of topic. Putin is systematically bombarding Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Hungary and Slovakia are using the interruption of oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline as a political lever to block key EU decisions in support of Ukraine. Trump is gaining control over Venezuela’s oil reserves. Iran is targeting its retaliatory strikes at energy facilities and has now closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which around a third of the global oil trade is transported – an attack on the most sensitive point of the global energy supply network.
Energy policy – a common thread in current conflicts
Global demand for energy is rising rapidly. At the same time, the balance of power is shifting. Fossil autocracies such as Russia and Iran are losing their influence on energy policy. China is developing all available energy sources; this includes investing in renewables at an unprecedented rate and securing global access to the necessary raw materials. Donald Trump, on the other hand, openly dreams of a new fossil fuel empire for the US – back to a future of coal, oil, gas, and nuclear power. The purchase of American liquefied natural gas (LNG) is effectively becoming a condition in trade agreements with the US. And the more unstable the Middle East becomes, the more attractive American gas appears as geopolitical insurance.
The cards are being reshuffled in the energy world
In this context, the expansion of domestic renewable energies is essential – not only for ecological reasons but also in security terms. Energy independence means strategic sovereignty and geopolitical resilience.
Yet in Berlin and Brussels, some are taking advantage of the global political situation to scale back climate and energy policy ambitions. The fact that it was solar and wind power that ensured our energy supply when Putin turned off the gas tap already appears to have faded from political memory. Instead of investing decisively in renewables, grids, and storage, we are witnessing delays, cuts, and political U-turns.
In Germany, economic affairs and energy minister Katherina Reiche plans to scrap subsidies for small-scale solar installations. The federal government is also relaxing key provisions of the Heating Act (GEG) and making it easier to install gas and oil heating systems. This comes at the exact moment when gas and oil markets are being thrown into turmoil.
The German government appears to have seriously lost its way on energy policy. With geopolitical pressure mounting, it is busily sawing off the only promising branch Europe is sitting on with its Heating Act and solar subsidy freeze. This is geopolitical negligence.
Resilience is more than military preparedness
The security dimension of energy policy has long been recognised, including by NATO. In addition to its 3.5% target for military spending, an additional 1.5% target for resilience and security has now been set. Behind this lies the conviction that security does not begin with tanks but rather with power grids, railway lines, and energy supplies.
This is precisely the focus of a new study by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), commissioned by our EU office. The authors systematically demonstrate how the 1.5% target could be implemented in concrete terms and how it could be linked in with sustainability strategies.
The study demonstrates that resilience involves more than just military preparedness. Investments in power grids, rail infrastructure, or decentralised energy supplies have direct defence policy implications. Military mobility depends on functioning rail connections. Decentralised renewable energies increase resilience to attacks on central networks, as we have seen in Ukraine. Even renaturation measures, such as rewetting peatlands, can help create natural defence barriers on NATO's eastern flank that are impassable for heavy Russian armoured vehicles.
This issue has particular political relevance as NATO is currently working intensively on operationalising its resilience and security target – including clarifying which measures count towards the 1.5%.
Implementing projects that both support defence and mitigate rising emissions and biodiversity loss is not an ideological pipe dream. These are pragmatic considerations in the interest of genuine security in Europe, of which energy policy and sustainability are essential building blocks.
Get Involved - Presidents' column
Get involved! There’s no other way to be real – thus the message of Heinrich Böll, and, to this day, his encouragement is inspiring us. With this column the Presidents of the Foundation involve themselves in current social and political debates. This column will appear each month, authored, in turn, by Jan Philipp Albrecht and Imme Scholz.