Republicans Threaten Iraq Aid

November 8, 2007

Middle East conflict extends beyond religion

By Matthew Goetz | Guest columnist
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Although a more unified Iraq may be the best means of achieving stability and peace, American policies have to this point only further entrenched the sectarian divide. When the Coalition Provisional Authority designed the Iraqi government in 2003, it distributed positions and power according to ethnicity and religion. Recently, however, the Iraqi Parliament has come under the influence of a nationalist coalition comprised of both Sunnis and Shi’as. While this coalition would appear to bode well for the reconciliation of religious sectarian violence, its power is limited by the influence of the United States.

The failure of the Iraqi government to make progress is largely due to the fact the Bush administration strongly encourages Prime Minister Maliki and his cabinet to introduce legislation that is opposed by the nationalists in the Iraqi Parliament and a majority of the Iraqi people. The nationalists are forced to either oppose the Prime Minister and create a stalemate, or allow the Bush Administration’s agenda to pass into Iraqi law. Although the ensuing political gridlock provides a convenient scapegoat for President Bush and his supporters, it has wreaked devastating consequences on the people of Iraq.

The most damning example of American interference in Iraqi politics is the proposed Iraq Oil Law. In October 2002, far in advance of the invasion needed to “find weapons of mass destruction,” a group of State Department officials, Iraqi exiles and oil company advisors met to discuss the future of Iraqi oil production and produce a draft of the Iraqi Oil Law. In 2006, the proposed Oil Law was reviewed by former or current executives at ExxonMobil, BP, ChevronTexaco and ConocoPhillips on its way to the Iraqi Parliament. Unlike hydrocarbon laws in neighboring Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which mandate state control of oil resources and only short-term contracts with multinational corporations, the proposed Iraqi Oil Law would grant extremely lucrative, long-term contracts to select western corporations.

Despite the pressure exerted by Washington, the proposed Oil Law has yet to pass in Iraq due to massive popular opposition.
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By continuing with its obsession to open oil resources, the Bush administration may create a stable Iraq in spite of itself.

Opposition to the Oil Law has united Shi’a and Sunni factions that had previously opposed one another. In addition to their opposition of American influence, the nationalist coalition has passed resolutions condemning Al Queda and the use of terrorism.
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Although it is hard to believe that a war so devastating in human and material cost was really fought over oil, the evidence continues to mount. The idea that that oil was a major factor influencing the U.S. invasion is no longer taboo, as it has already been voiced by esteemed nonpartisan sources such as former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan and retired CENTCOM Commander General John Abizaid.

Matthew Goetz is a senior political science major from Mechanicsburg, Pa.
http://ogb.wfu.edu/07/index.php?/ee/o_article/middle_east_conflict_extends_beyond_religion/