Qatar, Energy Security & Geopol

I have learned many valuable lessons in this course, most discussions concerned energy security, going more in depth with Qatar as a major player in the energy field. An important takeaway from this course was how Qatar uses their energy resources and capabilities as tools to enable them to address the contemporary security, economic and environmental opportunities and challenges that they face. It was interesting evaluating Qatar’s different strategies in order for them to achieve their national strategic priorities. The course allowed us to examine Qatar as an international actor whether it was through diplomatic relationships or approach to greener initiatives, utilizing their role in the energy market. One of the key takeaways from this course was how we were taught that energy security is not an economic resource, but it can simultaneously be an effective instrument for foreign policy. This as a result can serve in a country’s national interest. We discussed case studies such as the blockade and the role of Sovereign Wealth Funds in liquidating assets in order to protect its economy from regional pressures. Moreover, it was interesting to examine the significance of the Asian market for Qatar in the LNG industry, and seeing the different ways in which the role of new actors and the evolving nature of the energy market intertwine. Additionally, how these new factors, with time, can challenge Qatar’s strategies on sustainability. Subsequently, a key idea that resonated with me is the way Qatar approaches the cleaner energy initiatives. In the final scenario, we were tasked to respond to different energy sectors and one of them was the shift to renewable energy. I thought it was interesting to learn that Qatar tackles such sectors using a realistic approach by continuing leveraging the abundant natural gas reserves and LNG.