American Technologists and Entrepreneurs Re-Set Russian Relations (Shale boom threatens Putin)

RealClearPolitics ^ | September 4, 2013 | Sir Tony Brenton and Mark Mills

[2ndDivisionVet]

Unsurprisingly, oil prices are up in reaction to the Syrian mess. It’s worth keeping in mind that President Putin is at the top of the list of world leaders who benefit from this. The linkage between oil prices and Russia’s revenues cannot be ignored in calibrating what has, and may happen yet in the Middle East.

Hydrocarbons account for two-thirds of Russian export revenues and nearly half of its state budget. And until very recently just two regions, Russia and the Middle East, dominated world trade in oil and gas. Russia has regularly boasted of being an “energy superpower”. Indeed the whole Putin system is built on channeling hydrocarbon profits to regime supporters, as well as financing domestic military expansion. There were quite a few raised eyebrows at this year’s Paris Air Show when Russia showed off its new, expensive, Su-35 high-tech fighter aircraft.

Meanwhile, under President Obama -- and we hasten to note largely independent of and arguably despite U.S. federal policies -- entrepreneurs have created an oil and gas revolution in the American shale fields that undermines Russia’s export profits, and perhaps the very survival of Putin’s governance.

Russian oil production is at a 25-year high. If this had occurred in the tight world oil market everyone had expected, revenues would have soared in recent years. While the threat of Middle East war causes markets to price ahead of a supply disruption, historically that’s been a short-term effect. In the longer term the energy landscape has been permanently reset over the past half-dozen years with the entry of American oil and gas technology, inelegantly dubbed shale fracking.....

[henkster]

Laz hit upon the theory that this whole Syrian mess is linked to this issue. The Saudis want a gas pipeline through Syria to access the European market, since they are not selling to us. The Russians have a near monopoly on the European market, and need the money. They want to freeze out the Saudis, and use Assad’s Syria as a roadblock. The Saudis have enlisted us in their efforts to break that obstacle.

I personally think this is the whole reason you have “bipartisan” support for American intervention against Assad. Our leadership are whores to the Saudis, and the old cold warriors like McCain get to tweak the Russkies.

I still think it’s very bad policy and the downside is great. There is no upside.

[Da Coyote]

Hmmm, perhaps the State Department and the political world - of marshmallow majors - may learn that it’s the scientists, enginers, technicians and workers of this country that give it its power.

They are backed by a constitution written by founding fathers who possessed more knowledge of society than the vast majority of the “professors” in the marshmallow arts faculties of our universities.

No amount of “smart diplomacy” can stop a powerful nation.

Only a more powerful nation can do that, and hopefully we’ll remain powerful. Cheap and available energy is one necessity.

[sergeantdave]

Just for background, Sir Tony Brenton is one of the neo-fascist globalists behind the 1992 Rio “Earth Summit” and he negotiated the global agreement on climate change.

[bert]

This was posted yesterday.

The analysis is the best I have seen and gets to the heart of the matter. The Amerocentric news bias generally fails to consider there is a “rest of the world” with more important fish to fry than politics as usual.

http://chainsoff.wordpress.com/2013/02/19/the-geopolitical-dimension-of-syria-turkey-israel-and-the-greater-middle-east-energy-war/

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks 2ndDivisionVet.

Israel’s shale reserves 2nd largest in world
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3064187/posts

Should Israel get oil out of Vinegar, for an energy revolution?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3064136/posts