ROMANIA‐ A NEW GEOPOLITICAL ACTOR IN THE BLACK SEA ENERGY GAME

The Black Sea (BS) region is the space where are situated the last former communist states, which one way or another are willing to join the European Union or to become more compatible with Western economic and social standards. The paper discusses the idea of model countries, of how, based on the concentric circles principle, new waves of countries are becoming closer to the EU, as now it is time for the new member states to offer their expertise and support to countries from the BS region and the Balkans. It is in this context that Romania’s role as an intermediary between these countries is analyzed, given its geographical position in the above‐mentioned regions, interesting for specific sectorial cooperation such as energy. Through the AGRI project, Romania could become the second largest energy platform for the EU, after Turkey; and could become, making use of its membership, the EU’s main energy player in the region, becoming a nodal point for Caspian hydrocarbons transit to Central Europe.