Critical energy infrastructure security in the context of energy security, NATO concept and instance of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) Oil Pipeline

After end of the Cold War, Security Studies has begun to change with the change of dimension of international system and threats. Thus, all nation states realized that hard power is not the only issue which must be taken into consideration for the security of states. Since it has been realized that serious problems emerge in daily lives of human beings due to lack of energy security, energy security has been placed in the security problems list and placed on the top of agendas of states and international organizations through this change. In this thesis, basic concepts, threats and solutions of Critical Energy Infrastructure an important part of energy security and applications directed to critical energy infrastructure security in Turkey was observed by analyzing the instance of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) Crude Oil Pipeline. Security of energy supply has importance on maintaining energy security. With regard to security of states and international system, transportation of energy resources securely from East where is mostly politically unstable to consumer Western or Far East Region has importance. Since it is practical, economic and manageable to transport energy resources through pipelines from East to West, pipeline transportation has become prominent method. However, the threats whose dimensions has begun to change and diversified in international system has become serious menace towards pipeline transportation systems. Since this issue was put on the agenda of NATO an international organization working actively in order to sustain international security as a serious threat towards international system and its member states, a necessity was emerged to analyze this issue academically. In this regard, threats towards critical energy infrastructures and pipelines and solutions and precautions for those threats, changes on the agenda of NATO over the past decades and reflection of current situation of Turkey about critical energy infrastructure security by analyzing instance of Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline was aimed in this thesis.