Oil Struggle and the Fight for Power - Essay Example

 The period of industrialization marked the beginning of constant increasing demands in oil. Oil, in all its forms, is an integral tool needed to sustain modern life (The Oil Factor, 2004). Every single thing that people use can be traced back to oil (Gunderson, 2003). Just like the significance of water into one’s body, oil is an essential source of energy that propels the world. For any country, to gain access to this non renewable source, can be truly considered as a gift (Stevens, 2008).

But it is by looking into mankind’s history that one cannot help but to attest to the opposite. Possession of oil has been the cause of geopolitical and economical conflicts (Dietrich, 2010), most of which led to war. Endowment of oil reserve is not a guarantee of a nation’s rise to world power. Rather, their liberal supply of oil serves as a threat to their security.Over the years, Middle East remains to be the region with bountiful amount of oil. Dietrich (2010) mentioned that Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait are three of the Middle Eastern countries that are capable of supplying billions of oil barrels.

It is noteworthy that countries with large oil reserves have been in constant conflicts (Stevens, 2008). The recent US occupation of Iraq in 2003 made a remarkable impact on the oil economy. Iraq has the third largest oil reserve in the world (Dietrich, 2010). Upon the conclusion of the war in Iraq, people have come to pay attention to the true aim of the war. The inability of US to find the allegedly weapons of mass destruction contained in Iraq has led many to assume that America’s dwindling supply of oil is the main purpose of the intervention (The Oil Factor, 2004).

The fear of the disruption in oil supply has been constantly thriving in the global atmosphere. As the demands for oil consumption continuously grow, the world market can expect oil to reach skyrocket prices (Stevens, 2008). This threat motivates everybody, mostly industrialized nations, to take actions. If the increasing demand of oil does not cease, the future of oil industry in the Middle East can take one of two paths. Firstly, Middle East’s oil reserves can be expected to take a sweet spot in the global economy.

If this happens, Middle East can rise as one of the world’s most powerful regions. Experts claim that this is highly unlikely due to the fact that some of Middle Eastern countries are on an economic sanction (The Oil Factor, 2004). Gunderson (2003) stated that if collaboration from oil exporting countries is implemented, there can be a huge positive impact on the global market. Another conclusion for Middle East’s future in oil can be the fluctuation of its price if the nations’ oil productions compete against themselves (Gunderson, 2003).

Concurrently, it is predictable that Middle East can gain monopoly on oil distribution in the future. If the world would not be able to reduce its oil consumption or find an alternative solution, it is without hesitation that more oil-related conflicts will arise. The threat is not only international. It can be as local as within the region itself. Failure to conclude diplomatic negotiations among countries will gather allies and enemies for the Middle East. Middle East is undoubtedly gifted with land full of oil reserve.

The unperceptive utilization of oil and the lurking avariciousness of nations will continue to be a threat to the region. The standpoint from oil being a blessing has shifted to oil being a malediction to a country. If situations and the greed for power will not cease, political and economic conflicts can be expected within years to come. As long as oil is the ultimate source of energy, so does the battle to fight for the accumulation of it. ReferencesBrohy, A., & Ungerman, G. (Producers). (2004).

The Oil Factor: Behind the War on Terror [Documentary Film]. USA: Google Video. Dietrich, C. R. (2010). Oil. In T. Spencer & P. Roberts (Eds.), The Encyclopedia of Middle East Wars: The United States in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq Conflicts. (Vol. 1, pp. 926-928). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.Gunderson, C. (2003). World in Conflict: The need for oil. Edina, MN: Abdo.Stevens, P. (2008). National oil companies and international oil companies in the Middle East: Under the shadow of government and the resource nationalism cycle.

Journal of World Energy Law and Business, 1, 5-30. doi: 10.1093/jwelb/jwn004