USA and Russia: A Global War for Resources?

In New Eastern Outlook, Phil Butler suggests that the United States is waging a proxy war against Russia, and potentially China, for global resource domination. He writes:

The reason for the coming world war is pretty simple. At least, America has used it up, worn it out, and eaten it all for the past half-century. One nation of just over 300 million souls consumes one-quarter of virtually every commodity on the planet. Even the Romans were not so greedy in their exploitation of conquered territories. And while our methods differ from those of the Caesars, the result is the unprecedented enrichment of one society above all others. And by far, up until recently. Those who disagree might ask, “Okay, what is in Angola that is so important to American interests?” Some readers will already know the answer. Washington hates to see Sergey Lavrov talking with Joao Lourenco about oil, natural gas, and valuable mineral reserves. Only the reason for this is not so apparent.

Angola has vast untapped oil and gas resources estimated at 9 billion barrels of proven crude oil reserves and 11 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves. Looked at another way, Angola’s peak daily oil production is about 20% of what the Saudis can maintain. So all Angola needs to become the wealthiest country in Africa is a massive refinery. The government has to spend $2 billion a year on refined oil products for domestic use. Angola is as transparent a case for neo-colonial efforts by western nations as it exists. Plug in Italy’s ENI oil and gas contracts for exploration and production, add Norway’s Equinor, BP, Chevron, and Exxon Mobile, and the picture becomes more evident. Still, the primary stimulus for warring with Russia is obscure for most people. I’ll try to explain briefly.

We are in an unprecedented transitional phase where fossil fuel demand peaks and other technologies and commodities are rising. Experts predict that peak demand for liquid fuels will top out at about 103.2 million barrels daily. This number was determined by comparing data from all the most verifiable sources. This Washington Post story outlines how past recessions, COVID-19, and the coming global recession will negatively affect demand. Factoring in the desperate move toward electric cars and other so-called renewable solutions, what we are seeing now is an energy profits war. The west is optimizing profits for some different phase of this conflict.

One way for the western elites to marginalize Russia for good will be to make oil and gas unsellable commodities. At least, this is one strategy. The Titans of energy know that remaining fossil fuels must be sold at the absolute optimum price. And the only way to do this is to interrupt supply. But Biden’s war on Russia is not about stopping Russians from profiting on gas; it’s about Americans and their British buddies benefiting by a lot more. This quote from the WAPO article serves as an illustration:

“…oil demand has continued to grow as the indispensable energy carrier fueling rising global incomes and development. Still, the reserves of stamina that crude has called on to maintain its upward trajectory are finally giving out.”

In short, it’s a race to reap massive profits for the short term and to ramrod future alternatives into the consumer space without Russia and probably without China. This would leave both competitors holding an empty bag where worldwide competition over energy is concerned. Still, profiting massively from places like Angola, and the other energy periphery, is a short to mid-term strategy. I believe that the energy tycoons will use the conflict with Russia to optimize profits for investment in electric vehicles and other oil-intensive sectors. Perhaps the military-industrial complex factors in? Or, some Bill Gates depopulation schemes could also be in the mix. Given today’s uncertainties, who can say?

As for Russia and China, cheap oil and gas can still boost industrial growth. I also think emerging economies are the broader targets of trade and consumption. Putin and his BRICS partners know what is coming. I would not be surprised to see discussions about fueling new industrialization in all these countries with the use of cheap Russian fuels. That is, once the nuclear Winter blows over.

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