U.S. as Oil Policeman

An excellent article by Michael Klare, Hampshire College professor of peace and world security studies, highlights the degree to which the U.S. military now fulfils the role of security guard, guarding the world oil pipelines in the Central Asian republics, Latin America and Iraq as it continues to increase it’s dependence on imported oil.

An excellent article by Michael Klare, Hampshire College professor of peace and world security studies, highlights the degree to which the U.S. military now fulfils the role of security guard, guarding the world oil pipelines in the Central Asian republics, Latin America and Iraq as it continues to increase it’s dependence on imported oil.

The argument is well reasoned, the U.S. does not seek to possess the oil per se, since that is an exchangeable commodity that drives capitalist endeavour, but it seeks to ensure the oil infrastructure remains protected since the U.S. economy and it’s benefactors are so rigidly locked to fossil fuel consumption. Unmentioned in that article is the role the U.S. dollar plays as oil reserve currency and the threat it is under from the appreciating, politically diversifying Euro.