The Geopolitics of Oil

I ran across an excellent article, “A Primer on the Geopolitics of Oil,” by Anand Toprani, assistant professor of Strategy & Policy at the U.S. Naval War College. He has a book in the works, Oil and the Great Powers: Britain and Germany, 1914-1945.

Oil has been a commodity different from all others in world politics since it became the principal source of energy in the early 20th century. And it will remain so as long as the world is dependent on hydrocarbons for its energy needs. Toprani’s article reminds us how oil supply, demand and price affect our relations with other nations as well as our environment and our personal lives.