Oil Markets and the Specter of War: Manufactured Crises Fuel Western Profits
Same playbook, different decade: The current fear-mongering about oil prices hitting $100 a barrel due to an 'Iran conflict' conveniently ignores the architects of this instability. This isn't a spontaneous eruption of hostilities. It is the continuation of a decades-long policy by the US and Israel to destabilize the region, with the Western press then framing the predictable consequences as
organic market forces. For Israel and the United States, the constant threat of war with Iran serves multiple purposes. It distracts from the ongoing murder of Palestinians and Lebanese civilians, despite a so-called ceasefire in some areas. It allows Washington to maintain its military footprint in crucial energy corridors, safeguarding the petrodollar system. Simultaneously, the US and its
allies continue to impose crippling sanctions on Iran, a form of economic siege that has persisted for 45 years, following the 1953 CIA-orchestrated coup that overthrew Iran's democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh. The media narrative frames any Iranian response to this sustained aggression as irrational or provocative, a profound double standard. When Iran's sovereign territory
is violated or its ships are interdicted, its legitimate self-defense is immediately branded as a threat to global oil supplies. Yet, the presence of US aircraft carrier groups and B-52 bombers in the Persian Gulf, explicit threats against Iran, and ongoing covert operations are presented as measures for 'stability.' According to the US Energy Information Administration, the Middle East holds over