The recent crises over oil & gas deliveries from Russia to Ukraine and Belarus have triggered alarm and virulent criticism in the West. 

Russia is an unavoidable actor in world energy geopolitics. It is also the biggest energy partner of a European Union (EU) that is becoming ever more dependent on outside sources for its energy needs. However, the future of Russia's largest company-Gazprom-and the development of its future production capacities are at the center of a complex financial and political game dominated by numerous uncertainties, including Gazprom's actual reserves, its ability to invest in exploration and production, and its very capacity to develop production. Indeed, back in state hands, Russian gas and oil companies-Gazprom included-do not appear to be in a position to meet their future production commitments. Gazprom's ability to honor its contracts with gas companies in the EU is in fact already the subject of numerous interrogations.

Russia and the European Union have clearly entered a new stage in their energy relations, defined by a growing asymmetry between a strengthened national monopoly on the supply side and a gradual opening of markets in Europe. In this context, a multitude of new approaches to EU-Russia relations have been voiced recently by a wide variety of experts. Unfortunately, many of them involve 'defensive' solutions, driven by lack of mutual trust on both sides. Is a positive approach nevertheless still possible? The paper argues that competition is a key universal value in the development of a new and sustainable energy relationship between Russia and Europe. It is clear that EU competition regulators should take the lead in setting up a new framework for EU-Russia energy relations in the future. The success of their endeavors will not only determine the security of energy supply for European consumers, but also that of the Russian and Eurasian energy markets.