Description
Are oil-rich countries prone to war? And, if so, why? There is a widely held belief that contemporary wars are motivated by the desire of great powers like the United States or Russia to control precious oil resources and to ensure energy security.
This book argues that the main reason why oil-rich countries are prone to war is because of the character of their society and economy. Sectarian groups compete for access to oil resources and finance their military adventures through smuggling oil, kidnapping oil executives, or blowing up pipelines. Outside intervention only makes things worse. The use of conventional military force as in Iraq can bring neither stability nor security of supply.
This book examines the relationship between oil and war in six different regions: Angola, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Indonesia, Nigeria and Russia. Each country has substantial oil reserves, and has a long history of conflict. The contributors assess what part oil plays in causing, aggravating or mitigating war in each region and how this relation has altered with the changing nature of war. It offers a novel conceptual approach bringing together Kaldor's work on 'new wars' and Karl's work on the petro-state.
About the Author
Mary Kaldor is Professor of Global Governance at the London School of Economics and Political Science and co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2007) and New and Old Wars (Polity, 2012). Terry Lynn Karl is a professor of political science at Stanford University, where she has also been named the Gildred Professor of Latin American Studies and serves as a senior research scholar at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. She is the author of The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro-States (University of California Press, 1998) and co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2007). Yahia Said is visiting Research Fellow at the London School of Economics and the World Bank economist for Iraq. He is co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2008).
Reviews
Book Information
ISBN 9780745324784
Author Mary Kaldor
Format Paperback
Page Count 304
Imprint Pluto Press
Publisher Pluto Press
Weight(grams) 408g
This book argues that the main reason why oil-rich countries are prone to war is because of the character of their society and economy. Sectarian groups compete for access to oil resources and finance their military adventures through smuggling oil, kidnapping oil executives, or blowing up pipelines. Outside intervention only makes things worse. The use of conventional military force as in Iraq can bring neither stability nor security of supply.
This book examines the relationship between oil and war in six different regions: Angola, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Indonesia, Nigeria and Russia. Each country has substantial oil reserves, and has a long history of conflict. The contributors assess what part oil plays in causing, aggravating or mitigating war in each region and how this relation has altered with the changing nature of war. It offers a novel conceptual approach bringing together Kaldor's work on 'new wars' and Karl's work on the petro-state.
About the Author
Mary Kaldor is Professor of Global Governance at the London School of Economics and Political Science and co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2007) and New and Old Wars (Polity, 2012). Terry Lynn Karl is a professor of political science at Stanford University, where she has also been named the Gildred Professor of Latin American Studies and serves as a senior research scholar at the Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law. She is the author of The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro-States (University of California Press, 1998) and co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2007). Yahia Said is visiting Research Fellow at the London School of Economics and the World Bank economist for Iraq. He is co-editor of Oil Wars (Pluto, 2008).
Reviews
'[Oil Wars] offers the reader most authoritative, compelling and comprehensive coverage of the oil wars and its impact'
-- Strategic Studies JournalBook Information
ISBN 9780745324784
Author Mary Kaldor
Format Paperback
Page Count 304
Imprint Pluto Press
Publisher Pluto Press
Weight(grams) 408g
