CSIS Launches Initiative on European Energy Security

WASHINGTON, DC – October 5, 2026 – The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) today announced the launch of the Powering Forward Initiative (PFI), a new five-year research project exploring Europe’s ascending role in global energy policy and transatlantic relations, with a focus on the intersection of energy, security, and technology.

The initiative is being developed simultaneously in the United States and Europe, with the German Marshall Fund (GMF) of the United States leading PFI activities in Europe. It is supported by PPC Group, a leading Powertech group in Central and Southeast Europe.

At CSIS, the initiative is jointly led by the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program and the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program. The programs will explore and address critical questions at the intersection of energy, digital infrastructure, and European leadership in global energy policy through substantial new research, focused discussions, and strategic conversations.

“The pressure on Europe's energy system is real – supply disruption, high power costs, and grids being asked to support ambitious digitalization, competitiveness, decarbonization, and rearmament plans," said General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. (Ret.), CEO of CSIS. "Addressing those pressures is a shared transatlantic interest, and the Powering Forward Initiative will bring American and European expertise together to address them. A Europe that is energy-secure is a stronger and more capable partner for the United States.”

New research and activities from PFI will inform policy debates on issues such as energy, the power-digital nexus, security of supply, connectivity, and other challenges that are becoming increasingly vital to Europe’s interests. The initiative’s activities will include substantive policy analysis and high-level public conferences, including an annual conference on European energy security hosted at CSIS, as well as professional growth opportunities for the next generation of leaders engaged in transatlantic energy and economic security issues.

“At a moment when Europe’s energy security, its industrial base, and its strategic autonomy are under unprecedented pressure, sustained transatlantic dialogue is more important than ever,” said Max Bergmann, director of the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program. “PFI will produce rigorous, policy-relevant scholarship and convene the leaders who can act on it. We are grateful to PPC for making this work possible.”

“Energy sits at the center of Europe’s geopolitical, economic, and technological future,” said Joseph Majkut, director of the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program. “PFI offers a unique opportunity to leverage expertise across our programs and across the Atlantic to address how Europe is reshaping global energy markets and addressing climate security to develop an energy strategy that will power its renewal.”

To learn more about PFI, visit the CSIS website here.

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