Already a net energy importer, Europe needs more natural gas in the coming decades. The increasingly tense relationship with Russia raises the spectre of energy dependency and political pressure, Gazprom having proved a willing tool for rewarding or punishing behaviour as directed by the Russian State. Would Iran prove a less menacing supplier? Could Caspian gas be conveyed to Europe in the face of Russian opposition? Would Iraq plug the gap? Or Egypt? Europe needs answers, soon. Professor Kandiyoti holds the Chair of Industrial Chemistry at Imperial College London. He has worked in the general area of fuels and energy and has authored over 300 publications including a recent book on the geopolitics of oil and gas pipelines: ‘Pipelines: Flowing Oil and Crude Politics‘.