Review on the readings below - Essay Example

At full capacity of its pipeline, Azerbaijan’s revenues rose to $20 billion, growing by a third every year (De Waal 171). In 1994, the government signed a $10 billion contract with nine foreign companies, which created the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC). From these contracts, Azerbaijan used oil to become a politically visible country. Until present times, Caspian energy remains a strategic tool in the political decisions and foreign affairs of the U.S. in the region. Thomas de Waal is a British journalist and a writer on the Caucasus.

He is a valid source on the Caspian issues because he has written several books and articles on them. What is most interesting in the chapter is how oil has become the center of political battlefield in Azerbaijan. The familiarity with such issues is only in the Middle East, but it is clear that the South Caucasus also presented the same political-economic nexus. The chapter is relevant to the course because it shows how widespread the oil war is, both economically and politically. Chapter 7 narrates the rise of modern Georgia, its Rose Revolution and other internal and regional conflicts.

The Rose Revolution of November 2003 aimed to establish a democratic society and to enhance human rights and living conditions. At the same time, it wanted to decrease corruption and improve the national economy. Corruption was most prominent in 1999, under President Eduard Shevardnadze. Dismal economic conditions lasted until 2003. The Rose Revolution was initiated by the military to generate political and economic changes. However, conflicts continued afterwards because of the failure of the new government in addressing reforms and the remaining tension between Georgia and Russia.

Chapter 7 provides a good example of a government that was changed from within through military intervention and not through any other popular