How should countries cooperate to ensure the normal development of energy trade?

The regional and structural imbalance of energy occurrence determines the transnational flow of energy and the internationalization of energy trade. With the continuous development of globalization and the increasing interdependence of the world system, the transnational and comprehensive nature of energy security issues has become increasingly prominent. In essence, the problem of energy security is not a serious shortage of total amount, but a problem of how to allocate the world's energy resources reasonably and effectively. Ensuring the safe supply of energy in China and the allocation of energy resources in the world are all solved through energy trade. It is impossible for a country's energy security to become a closed market independently from the general trend of world economic globalization. Only through bilateral or multilateral cooperation or cooperation under competition can we achieve mutual compatibility, integration and overall balance. Energy importing countries should abandon the old thinking of seeking security advantages through vicious competition, expand common interests by strengthening cooperation in the energy field, and improve their ability and efficiency in coping with threats and challenges. Facts have proved that energy security can only be based on mutual benefit and win-win security interests, and unilateral and "zero-sum" security demands cannot guarantee real and lasting energy security. While realizing their own energy security, countries must respect the interests and concerns of other countries and create conditions for each other's energy security.

Evolution of the concept of energy security

Looking back on the development of human society, the problem of energy security has a long history. Since the industrial revolution characterized by electric power, chemical revolution and internal combustion engine at the end of 19, the global energy demand has been increasing, and energy security issues have gradually emerged. So far, there are three major changes in the concept of solving energy security problems in countries around the world: one is the concept of energy security related to war, the other is the concept of energy security during the Cold War, and the third is the concept of new energy security under the new situation. Compared with the concept of energy security during the war and the concept of energy security during the cold war, the concept of new energy security under the new situation is more abundant, which is highlighted in five aspects (Figure 1).

From single security to comprehensive security

In today's world, energy diversification has become an inevitable choice of energy strategies in various countries. Traditional energy security focuses on single oil security, while the new energy security concept pays attention to the overall safety of major energy sources such as natural gas, electricity, coal and nuclear energy while paying attention to oil security.

From narrow security to broad security

Traditional energy security focuses on preventing the interruption of oil supply in the Middle East. The new concept of energy security holds that the globalization and normalization of terrorist activities need to extend energy security to all countries and all links in the energy supply chain, and maintaining the stability of energy sources, infrastructure security and transportation channel security are all important contents of energy security.

From one-way security to two-way security

Traditional energy security mainly focuses on supply security, while the new energy security concept holds that the main body of energy security includes consumers, transporters and producers, and energy security is the same for consumers and producers. While paying attention to the supply safety of consumers, we should also pay attention to the demand safety of producers and the transportation safety of transporters.

From confrontation security to cooperative security

Traditional energy security opposes the interests of consumers and producers and emphasizes "alliance security" or "alliance security". The concept of new energy security holds that the energy security of any country or region depends on global energy security, and the only way to ensure energy security is "cooperative security" and "win-win security", that is, from national security to global security.

From short-term security to long-term security

Traditional energy security mainly deals with the short-term supply interruption in the market, while the new energy security concept pays more attention to the sustainability of energy supply and the safety of ecological environment while dealing with the short-term supply interruption in the market. New energy, new technology and climate change have become the important contents of the new energy security concept.