Electric Vehicles, Energy Security, and Geopolitics: A 21st‑Century Nexus

Electric vehicles (EVs) play a crucial role in reducing transport-related emissions-a key driver of global climate change-and enhancing national energy security by lessening dependence on imported fossil fuels.Notably, they also reshape global geopolitical dynamics, altering how nations interact in energy and industrial sectors.This paper analyzes EVs from three core perspectives: economic impacts, political implications, and issues of justice.It further contextualizes global EV adoption within the broader landscape of energy security initiatives and the intricate patterns of international energy flows.Our findings show that in the short term, EVs effectively cut greenhouse gas emissions and spur the growth of new industries, such as battery production.However, achieving longterm sustainability remains difficult under the current economic growth model, which often overlooks circularity.Politically, while cross-border sharing of EV technology has increased, weak mutual trust, fiercer competition for critical minerals, and growing protectionism hinder progress, leading to uneven global EV development.