Eurasian energy and Israel's choices

The recent boom in Caspian and Central Asian oil and gas developments is changing the geography of the Eurasian energy map, opening up significant opportunities for new, more secure energy flows to Israel. Israel's energy position is unique. Israel imports nearly all of the oil and gas that it consumes but it cannot increase imports from its energy-rich Arab neighbors without creating a strategic vulnerability. As a result, Israel must diversify both the geography of its energy suppliers as well as the types of fuels it consumes. Oil and gas from Eurasia can play an important role in Israel's goal of energy supply diversification. Of particular importance is the emergence of the 'Southern Corridor, ' an energy export route composed of three key production and transit countries, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey, that lie at the crossroads of Europe, the Caspian, the Middle East, and Russia. This paper will highlight the challenges and opportunities to Israel posed by the numerous east-to-west oil and gas pipeline projects currently being developed across Eurasia. The paper will explain Israel's current energy supply situation and present the country's energy security goals. It will review the immense energy resource base being developed in the Caspian and Central Asia and the existing pipeline infrastructure that is already bringing these supplies to Western markets. It will further review several planned pipeline routes currently under development and assess the relevance of those projects to Israel's goal of energy diversification. This paper will evaluate the security of these strategic pipeline routes amid the active and frozen conflicts of the South Caucasus, the region's growing terrorist threats, and the emerging great power competition over control of Eurasia's energy resources. Finally, it will examine the importance of Caspian and Central Asian resources from geopolitical and energy perspectives and recommend policy actions to help Israel navigate the constantly shifting politics and security of the Eurasian pipeline map.