In order to understand the Middle East, it helps to explore the energy dimension of this resource rich region.

Since the year 2000, Karin Kneissl lectures on geopolitics of oil and natural gas. She has been teaching energy related topics, inter alia, at the National Defense College Vienna, the Military Academy, the Diplomatic Academy etc. For the OSCE, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, she assumed several missions to Central Asia and completed studies on the political and economic role of natural gas in the area.  Among the universities which invite her as guest-lecturer are: Université Saint Joseph in Beirut, the European Business School EBS in the Frankfurt region, the Academy of Sciences of Slovenia.

In spring 2006, her book "Der Energiepoker" was published by the FinanzBuch Verlag in Munich. Two years later a second revised edition was launched. This book has become a reference in various business and academic circles. Karin Kneissl conducts briefings on trends in the energy business for companies in Austria, Germany, Turkey, Iran and beyond. OPEC, as well as energy developments from the Middle East to Central Asia and also subsaharan Africa are her regular topics of research. To present the bigger picture in her lectures, she follows attentively the electricity market and the role of renewables. The latter two topics, however, are not the main focus of her publications.

As an independent analyst she participates on a regular level in commodity seminars and energy debates. Karin Kneissl finances research and journeys by herself, in order to conduct her studies in an independent way.

In June 2021 elected as independent director of the board of Rosneft.

On May 20th, she resigned from the Board after she had informed the company already in early March that she was not running for a second mandate. https://www.rosneft.ru/press/releases/item/210795/

Rosneft

The election of Karin Kneissl as independent director in the Board of Directors received strong international media coverage

pdf

New director says Rosneft has exploration cost advantage

reuters.com, 7.6.2021

Neue „Rosneft“-Aufsichtsrätin Karin Kneissl: Endlich Frau in Spitzenamt eines Erdöl-Weltkonzerns

snanews.de, 4.6.2021

EVENTS

Antalya Diplomacy Forum

Upon the invitation by the Government of the Republic of Turkey Karin Kneissl attends the Antalya Diplomacy Forum from June 18th to 20th 2021 as a part of the energy panel.

program

OPEC workshop

The future of road and maritime transport shapes the oil-market - we discussed this at OPEC’s workshop. Will technology be the answer to our mobility or will strategic commodities continue to have their say?The future of road and maritime transport shapes the oil-market - we discussed this at OPEC’s workshop. Will technology be the answer to our mobility or will strategic commodities continue to have their say?

18. September 2019 - Vienna, Austria

Website

OPEC Insight

Prior to the OPEC Ministerial Council on May 25, 2017 Karin Kneissl participate in the following OPEC Insight debate.

Video

OPEC Oil Insight Debate

Karin Kneissl participated in the OPEC Oil Insight Debate at the eve of the OPEC ministerial meeting on Dec. 4th 2015 in Vienna

Citywire, Munich, 1.12.2015

Karin Kneissl was keynote speaker at the Fund Manager meeting hosted by Citywire in Munich on Dec. 1, 2015. Her topic was the current state of the oil-market.

2015 Wealth Management Retreat

Karin Kneissl was keynote speaker at the 2015 Wealth Management Retreat organized by Citywire in Hertfordshire.

The topic of her lecture was the role for geopolitics in an oversupplied oil-market.

Interview by Richard Lander

"Prepare for a Balkanisation of the Middle East", Review by Selin Bucak

INTERVIEWS

There is no such thing as a European energy policy

Lars Schall, 11. September 2014

"The crux of today's civilization is energy"

Lars Schall, 23 July 2013

Energy Security and the Geopolitical dimensions of Fossil Fuel Availability

Podiumsdiskussion aspo2012 (Video)

PUBLICATIONS

Karin Kneissl: EU energy crisis is homemade, thanks to fixation on climate change while ignoring other aspects

The many reasons for the current energy price crisis: it is home-made.

rt.com, 5.10.2021

Will the alleged Alexey Navalny poisoning sink the Nord Stream 2 pipeline? It might, but it shouldn’t

rt.com, 23.9.2020

Virtual OPEC+ meetings regulating a paper oil market can lead to slipping commitment and more volatility

rt.com, 9.6.2020

The car is a symbol of freedom and mobility. Covid-19 isn’t going to change that

rt.com, 6.5.2020

In an evolving multipolar world, OPEC’s role becomes more vital

OPEC bulletin, 7-8/19

Dr. Karin Kneissl: "Uncertainty in an oversupplied oil market"

e-fundresearch.com, 4.8.2015

Study on the natural gas explorations in the Levant Basin, published by the Moscow State Institute of International Relations in autumn 2014

COURSES

Politics and Economics of the Energy Market

Training Seminar in Angola, May 14-15 2015

The region is central in the life of Karin Kneissl who also spent part of her childhood in Jordan. Her dissertation in international law is titled "The concept of borders in the Middle East". For her research she studied as a stipend, inter alia, at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, in Syria and Egypt. During her diplomatic assignments at the Austrian Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs she was posted to the Middle East department during some year. Though she did several brief missions to the Middle East, she was never posted in the region. To better understand people and their issues Karin Kneissl learnt Arabic and Hebrew next to her law studies. She does practice Arabic during her regular journeys, which bring her to Lebanon and Egypt most of the time. In the year 2014, she published an autobiographic book entitled "Mein Naher Osten" (My Middle East). She describes her turbulent stages of life which brought her back again and again to this complex and war-ridden world, to which she owes a lot. As she writes at the beginning of her book: Without the Middle East I would have never become the one I am.

EVENTS

Professor Karin Kneissl, Director of the G.O.R.K.I. Center at St. Petersburg State University, gave a public lecture on Palestinian-Israeli relations

St. Petersburg University hosted a public lecture by Karin Kneissl, head of the G.O.R.K.I. Center (Geopolitical Observatory for Russian Key Issues) of St. Petersburg State University, energy analyst, professor, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Austria. The topic of her lecture is "Territory, History and Religion in the Arab-Israeli Dilemma".

25.October,2023

Lecture for young scientists

Karin Kneissl lectured for an audience of young scientists at the Austrian Academy of Sciences. One of the main themes of debate was on demography and the current refugee dramas.

PUBLICATIONS

Karin Kneissl: Jordan’s royal dynasty is volatile, but it’s a matter for Jordanians to solve themselves

rt.com, 7.4.2021

Karin Kneissl: The US and Saudi Arabia have always had a messy alliance. How much is Biden prepared to shake it up?

rt.com, 2.3 2021

The new Middle Eastern normal

Le Monde Essay, Cercle Diplomatique 1/2021

Arabian slights: How a deepfake video caused a rift in the Arab world and led to a three-year blockade of Qatar

Having followed the Qatar crisis for years some thoughts on the deep rift and some possible developments

rt.com, 5.1.2021

Surviving assassination attempts and being kidnapped by Carlos the Jackal: The extraordinary life of the oil man who was Mr OPEC

rt.com, 30.6.2020

Angry young man

Scottish Review, 9 March 2016

Elements for a scientific analysis for the arab revolution in spring 2011

Austrian Academy of Sciences, 2011

Karin Kneissl is regularly invited as lecturer on Middle Eastern and energy related topics. Furthermore, she obtained a certain expertise as a political analyst by the means of her publications and her passion for research from demography to economic developments. She has been teaching International Law, history of diplomacy and conducted seminars on the role of International Organizations for various years. Therefore, very different organizers - from cultural associations to banks and schools - invite her to comment on current topics.

COURSES

2021 fall term

During the 2021 fall term at MGIMO (Moscow University for International Relations) Karin Kneissl offer the following two courses:

The craft and Mastery of Diplomacy

Syllabus

The oil and gas market in global politics and economics

Syllabus

Political and Economic Features of the World Oil Market

May 11th to June 4th, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria Karin Kneissl delivered remotely a series of lectures on the "Political and Economic Features of the World Oil Market". The course sparked the interest of the audience. It was attended by 97 Russian and foreign students from 12 graduate and 5 undergraduate programs of different MGIMO schools.

Lectures

Summary

TV & VIDEOS

OSCE Security Days 2013

Session 3

ACADEMIA SUPERIOR (2011)

Janne Teller and Karin Kneissl in discussion with Nadja Bernhard

Interview Karin Kneissl

Karin Kneissl

• In September 2020, Karin Kneissl involuntarily left her home country as a result of persistent death threats and a de facto ban on working in Austria. After a long search, she found a small farm in France to make a new start with her animals.
• However, the media agitation from Austria also reached her there and she was forced to move again.
• In June 2022, she moved with her dogs and ponies to Lebanon, where, after a marathon through the administration, she received her residence permit and tax number and, after six months in subletting, found a house in the north of the country.
• In June 2023, Karin Kneissl became a co-founder and head of the G.O.R.K.I center.
• Karin Kneissl had already been doing most of her work at home in Austria since the autumn 1998. In the wake of the pandemic, it has become easier for some professions to work online. For example, Karin Kneissl works with partners in Russia, Turkey, and Switzerland via computer. Power outages are a daily occurrence in Lebanon, but with a lot of improvisation and dedication, a professional and private daily routine can be organized.
• 2019: Since leaving the government, Karin Kneissl has written two books, one on Diplomacy, and one on the transition of mobility. Furthermore, she contributes guest comments on Middle Eastern and energy topics to RT (Russia Today) and several other media outlets, such as Cicero, and has been doing briefings online, mostly for companies outside of Austria. In June 2021 elected as independent director of the board of Rosneft. Karin Kneissl resigned on May 20th, 2022. She had already informed the company in early March that she was not running for a second mandate.
• Minister of Foreign Affairs of Austria from Dec. 2017 to June 2019
• She studied law and Arabic at the University of Vienna 1983-1987, was granted a scholarship for the Hebrew University of Jerusalem 1988, where she accomplished her thesis research, later on studied in Amman and on a grant basis at GU Washington, DC. She is a graduate of ENA.
• Karin joined the Austrian Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1990, served in Paris and Madrid, as well as in the Legal office. She quitted the diplomatic service in october 1998 and turned into a freelance analyst. She has authored several books on energy, geopolitics and the Middle East.

Download Dr. Karin Kneissl's CV (PDF file)

Dr. Karin Kneissl is the co-founder and head of the G.O.R.K.I Center since June 2023. She arrived in St. Petersburg in September and officially took up her activities.

The Geopolitical Observatory for Russia's Key Issues is an integral part of St. Petersburg University. The G.O.R.K.I Center was established on March 30, 2023 with the purpose to analyze geopolitical, foreign economic and socio-economic problems that have a direct impact on the development of Russia. The Center studies Russia's role in global politics and its international ties, as well as migration and demography issues within the country.

In addition, the G.O.R.K.I Center is engaged in the analysis of the development of the Arab-Islamic world from North Africa to West Asia.

The G.O.R.K.I provides six areas of scientific expertise: economics; law; international relations; political science; Asian and African studies; and sociology. Over 20 experts are employed by the Center, all of them being St. Petersburg University lecturers. They carry out continuous monitoring and analysis of these topics. Experts strive to conduct a deep and comprehensive analysis of all changes, study potential ramifications and indicate prospects for overcoming possible difficulties. The teams of G.O.R.K.I consist of two-five members.

Videos

"Who is Mrs. Karin Kneissl?", Atlas for Development, youtube

Karin Kneissl on the Universal Diplomat for the 21st Century, youtube

Books

• Der Grenzbegriff der Konfliktparteien im Nahen Osten.

  Dissertation, Universität Wien, 1991.

• Hizbollah: Libanesische Widerstandsbewegung, islamische Terrorgruppe oder bloß eine politische Partei? Eine Untersuchung der schiitischen Massenbewegung Hizbollah im libanesischen und regionalen Kontext.

  Landesverteidigungsakademie, Wien 2002, ISBN 3-901328-69-6.

• Der Energiepoker: Wie Erdöl und Erdgas die Weltwirtschaft beeinflussen.

  Finanzbuch Verlag, München 2006, ISBN 3-89879-187-4;  second revised edition 2008, ISBN 978- 3-89879-448-0.

• Die Gewaltspirale: Warum Orient und Okzident nicht miteinander können.

  Ecowin, Salzburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-902404-39-8.

• Testosteron macht Politik.

  Braumüller, Wien 2012, ISBN 978-3-99100-068-6.

• Die zersplitterte Welt: Was von der Globalisierung bleibt.

  Braumüller, Wien 2013, ISBN 978-3-99100- 086-0.

• Mein Naher Osten.

  Braumüller, Wien 2014, ISBN 978-3-99100-112-6. 3E édition 2017.

• Prinz Eugen: Vom Außenseiter zum Genie Europas.

  Belvedere, Wien 2014, ISBN 978-3-902805-58-4. Traduit en Russe en 2019.

• Wachablöse: Auf dem Weg in eine chinesische Weltordnung.

  Frank & Frei, Wien 2017, ISBN 978-3- 9504348-4-2.

• Die Mobilitätswende und ihre Brisanz für Gesellschaft und Weltwirtschaft.

  Vienne Éditions Braumüller, September 2020. ISBN 978-3-99100-307-6.

• Diplomatie Macht Geschichte: Die Kunst des Dialogs in unsicheren Zeiten.

  Hildesheim. Éditions Olms, June 2020. ISBN 978-3-487-08633-0.

• Requiem for Europe.

  ROSSPEN, Moscow 2024, ISBN 978–5-8243-2570-6.

Languages

• In November 2020 Karin Kneissl started an online Russian course at the Pushkin Institute in Moscow. For more than 30 years it has been her wish to study this beautiful language. And then the second lockdown provided her with that opportunity since all my other contracts, plans etc had been evaporating. Now in August 2020 she could give her first interview in Russian to the press service of the Pushkin Institute.