194
well (atlanticcouncil.org 2020a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i). Trump was so strident on a great
many foreign policy issues during the campaign trail, this has translated into foreign
policy announcements and overtures that have been equally dramatic and brusque.
Second, very few of the administration’s policy pronouncements are conclusive
(https://www.csis.org/analysis/energy-era-frenemy-foreign-policy 2018).
The tempting idea that energy independence and national energy security are the
same thing has been fortified by the recent revival of oil and gas in the US. However,
this idea is shown to be completely misleading by the global nature of energy markets. Two-thirds of global oil and gas production is traded internationally. Russia,
which exports large volumes of gas and oil, is an importer of high-quality uranium,
machinery, equipment, and electricity. It is mandatory for Saudi Arabia, the petrogiant, to import refined gasoline and an array of technologies in the extractive industry (Bazilian et al. 2017:426). It is currently trying to seize the opportunity to enter
the arena of solar energy. It is difficult to keep away from global markets—even for
the vast and ample United States. While the US is an exporter of coal and liquefied
natural gas, it still imports crude oil and rarely found earth minerals. It appears that
the Federal lands that are expected to be opened for new coal mining will not affect
that market or its prices. It is not sufficient to consider shortages in or disrupted
energy services as stand-alone problems that can be solved by means of military
action; it needs to be realized that they are interconnected threats to the entire world
with the potential to disrupt stability. It is underscored by the most recent Quadrennial
Defense Review (QDR) of the Defense Department that competitive demand for
resources, such as energy and water, might contribute to a rise in instability in the
future, and this may increasingly cause local confrontations to turn into more extensive conflicts (US Department of Defense 2014). Consequently, it is essential for
new approaches to be devised and for these to be supported by diplomacy (Bazilian
et al. 2017:433).
5+1 Forum
US officials’ visit to Central Asia and the Caspian Sea could be a sign of the region’s
importance in US foreign policy. In February 2020, Mike Pompeo visited Central
Asia. Coinciding with Pompeo’s visit to Central Asia, the State Department unveiled
its new strategy document for Central Asia, entitled “Promoting Independence and
Economic Prosperity.” The US strategy, which, three decades after the collapse of
the Soviet Union and the independence of the Central Asian republics, is still based
on the “Holy Trinity of Independence, National Sovereignty and Territorial
Integrity” of one Central Asian country, according to one US diplomat. The slogans
that were the focus of US diplomats’ claims three decades ago to persuade the
newly independent republics not to fall into Russia’s lap. The US State Department
announced that Pompeo met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and First
President Nursultan Nazarbayev as well as Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tleuberdi in
Kazakhstan “to reaffirm our shared commitment to peace, prosperity, and security
in Central Asia.” While in Uzbekistan, Pompeo is expected to hold a meeting with
6 Trump Energy Diplomacy
well (atlanticcouncil.org 2020a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i). Trump was so strident on a great
many foreign policy issues during the campaign trail, this has translated into foreign
policy announcements and overtures that have been equally dramatic and brusque.
Second, very few of the administration’s policy pronouncements are conclusive
(https://www.csis.org/analysis/energy-era-frenemy-foreign-policy 2018).
The tempting idea that energy independence and national energy security are the
same thing has been fortified by the recent revival of oil and gas in the US. However,
this idea is shown to be completely misleading by the global nature of energy markets. Two-thirds of global oil and gas production is traded internationally. Russia,
which exports large volumes of gas and oil, is an importer of high-quality uranium,
machinery, equipment, and electricity. It is mandatory for Saudi Arabia, the petrogiant, to import refined gasoline and an array of technologies in the extractive industry (Bazilian et al. 2017:426). It is currently trying to seize the opportunity to enter
the arena of solar energy. It is difficult to keep away from global markets—even for
the vast and ample United States. While the US is an exporter of coal and liquefied
natural gas, it still imports crude oil and rarely found earth minerals. It appears that
the Federal lands that are expected to be opened for new coal mining will not affect
that market or its prices. It is not sufficient to consider shortages in or disrupted
energy services as stand-alone problems that can be solved by means of military
action; it needs to be realized that they are interconnected threats to the entire world
with the potential to disrupt stability. It is underscored by the most recent Quadrennial
Defense Review (QDR) of the Defense Department that competitive demand for
resources, such as energy and water, might contribute to a rise in instability in the
future, and this may increasingly cause local confrontations to turn into more extensive conflicts (US Department of Defense 2014). Consequently, it is essential for
new approaches to be devised and for these to be supported by diplomacy (Bazilian
et al. 2017:433).
5+1 Forum
US officials’ visit to Central Asia and the Caspian Sea could be a sign of the region’s
importance in US foreign policy. In February 2020, Mike Pompeo visited Central
Asia. Coinciding with Pompeo’s visit to Central Asia, the State Department unveiled
its new strategy document for Central Asia, entitled “Promoting Independence and
Economic Prosperity.” The US strategy, which, three decades after the collapse of
the Soviet Union and the independence of the Central Asian republics, is still based
on the “Holy Trinity of Independence, National Sovereignty and Territorial
Integrity” of one Central Asian country, according to one US diplomat. The slogans
that were the focus of US diplomats’ claims three decades ago to persuade the
newly independent republics not to fall into Russia’s lap. The US State Department
announced that Pompeo met with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and First
President Nursultan Nazarbayev as well as Foreign Minister Mukhtar Tleuberdi in
Kazakhstan “to reaffirm our shared commitment to peace, prosperity, and security
in Central Asia.” While in Uzbekistan, Pompeo is expected to hold a meeting with
6 Trump Energy Diplomacy