Countries around the world are revisiting their nuclear safety procedures in the wake of the Japanese earthquake and its impact on the Fukushima nuclear facility. Little has been made of the fact, however, that the facility withstood the effects of the unprecedented 9.1 magnitude earthquake only to succumb to the tsunami that it unleashed. What the impact that these events will have on the further development of nuclear power in Asia, a technology viewed as critical by many Asian governments in combating energy import dependence and atmospheric pollution, is the subject of this contribution by Hooman Peimani at the National University of Singapore.

As Arctic ice melts, there is increasing interest in the High North region as an area of potential exploitation of hidden oil and gas reserves. We have previously reported on the potential for conflict among littoral Arctic states. JES contributor Hong Nong updates this perspective in speculating that rather than energy in the Arctic being a catalyst for conflict, these resources may become a driver for cooperation among states in the region and among and between non-Arctic regional actors as well.

Tapping the rewards of Arctic oil may not be undone by geopolitics but rather by the hard-knuckled climatic, technological, and geophysical challenges of tapping this black gold. Buried thousands of meters beneath the Beaufort Sea's surface, engineers face a huge bouquet of hurdles that Mother Nature has put in man's way to reach this offshore oil in Canada's High North. Canadian energy expert, Doug Matthews takes us through some of the icy challenges facing man and machine in adding to Canada's energy security in this most daunting of places.

Oscillating between cooperation and confrontation, China and India are racing to bolster their own national energy security. Against this backdrop, both countries rely on the Indian Ocean as a global commons area for energy transport, sparking, at least in part, a naval build-up in both nations. First time JES contributor Eddie Walsh plots out a number of possible scenarios, weaving the strategic, military, economic and social implications of the need for both India and China to secure energy for national prosperity, together with the meaning of these developments for the global security landscape.

The US Navy has employed over 500 small nuclear reactors on board its ships and submarines over the past 50 years without incident. With the future of large scale nuclear power on the ropes post-Fukishima, small modular reactors (SMRs) are getting a new look. Contributor Micah Loudermilk at the US National Defense University analyzes the advantage of SMRs over their larger-scale counterparts and over renewable energy power generation as well.

It was only a matter of time before the fall-out from the Arab Spring would impact on Egyptian-Israeli relations. The impact is manifesting itself in calling into scrutiny the Egyptian-Israeli gas accord that shipped some 2.5 billion cubic meters of Egyptian gas to Israel in 2010. Adding to Israeli gas woes have been attacks against energy infrastructure in the Northern Sinai which since February 5th have cut off Egyptian gas deliveries to Israel and Jordan. Where all this is headed in terms of the Egyptian-Israeli gas relationship is the subject of the following by JES Contributor Daniel Fink.

Kornel Andzsans-Balogh contributes the fourth, and final installment, of our coverage of threats and challenges to Visegrad state energy security with a detailed look at Hungary. While the country has significantly increased its national security through transit diversification, through transmission interconnectors for electricity supply, and through greater gas storage, it remains vulnerable to excess country-of-origin dependence on natural gas from the Russian Federation. Having said this, Hungary's accomplishments are worth noting and instructive to other nations facing the same or a similar problem, not only in Europe but around the world. 

Of all the countries across Central and Eastern Europe, Poland has been among the most vocal about its energy-related security vulnerabilities. Sticking to coal, which continues to generate the majority of the country's electricity, Poland is under increasing pressure to diversify its fuel mix for security and environmental reasons. LNG, nuclear and renewables are all on the table for altering its energy and power supply. And with the Polish Presidency of the EU Council scheduled to commence this summer, energy will be high on the agenda. Contributor Honorata Nyga - Łukaszewska profiles Poland's National Energy Security Strategy and in doing so provides us a baseline understanding of where the country stands presently on energy and how it plans on bolstering its energy security future.