To be sure, governments cannot escape their responsibilities to their citizens, and only the most naïve technocrat believes that the market alone can ensure energy independence. At the same time, however, purely bilateral negotiations between individual EU members and oil- and gas-producing countries weakens the member states’ bargaining power, as well as undermining Europe’s geopolitical weight in world affairs.
实际上，各国政府无法回避它们对其公民的责任，而只有最天真的专家治国论者才会相信仅仅依靠市场就能保证能源的独立。与此同时，各个欧盟成员国分别与石油和天然气的生产国之间进行的双边谈判降低了成员国讨价还价的能力，同时也削弱了欧洲在世界事务中的地缘政治力量。