ireland.com - The Irish Times - EU report warns of conflict with Russia over energy issue - by Jamie Smyth
EU report warns of conflict with Russia over energy issue - by Jamie Smyth
A report on security challenges to the EU will bluntly warn the union's summit next week that Europe could face conflict with Russia over access to energy reserves in the Arctic and a dangerous surge in immigration due to the impact of climate change. And the report warns that the EU must address the reality that fragile states in Africa, Asia and the Middle East will be much worse off due to severe food and water shortages, which are likely to spark regional conflicts and humanitarian disasters. The warnings are contained in the report, Climate Change and International Security, from the EU's foreign policy chief Javier Solana and the commission to the EU leaders' meeting next week in Brussels.
It argues that climate change threatens to "overburden states and regions which are already fragile and conflict prone" and urges a radical rethink of EU policies to better protect its own political and security interests. The paper warns that competition over water and food supplies will fuel existing conflicts in Africa and intensify political instability in the Middle East where two-thirds of the Arab world rely on water sources outside their borders.
