U.S. gets most of its oil from Venezuela & Canada, refuting the assertion that U.S. is in Iraq just for oil?

Question

The U.S. gets most of its oil from Venezuela, Canada, and now, Russia, doesn't this contradict the assertion that the U.S. is in Iraq just for oil? Does Iraq really have that much oil? If it was all about oil, why didn't we find a reason to go to war with Russia instead? They have hundreds of times the oil that Iraq has, and losing the cold war has left them in a weakened position.

Please don't give me statistics from 2002 as "proof" that my "information is wrong"! It's 2006! A lot changes in four years!

ceprn, your 2002 statistics show that, even then, we were getting more oil from other counties than were from Iraq. Canada and Venezuela included. How does this disprove my point? Why didn't the U.S. invade Venezuela, or Mexico. Why hasn't the U.S. invaded Nigeria, that would have been far less dangerous than invading Iraq.

Answer 1

I am always amazed by people trying to make an argument, do they not read their posts? Anyways, if you are going to site facts make sure they are 1. current 2. accurate and 3. from a reputable source.

www.snopes.com is a rumour site, urban legends. Stuff of Morons and Webidiots.

Now folks like OPEC, DOE, Oil Importers Association have fairly reliable figures. The Brookings Institute, Pew Trust, etc also have fairly accurate details. It's their business and they take it seriously.

That aside, I can't say I have ever heard any respectable analyst on foreign affairs use your argument, even the fringe folks on the left and right!


I wouldn't attack your assumption on Russia. However I would attack the whole idea that the US invaded Iraq purely for Oil. Maybe ultimately but on the short term no. Cheap oil will never come into play on this type of scenario. Remember the pre-invasion days of oil at 22USD per barrel? Well those went to hell once the rhetoric between Washington and Bagdad started flying. As for Iraq being poor and backwards, they actually had one of the largest standing armies in the world, a highly technologically advanced army (www.janes.com ) and support from many nations, including France, Germany, Russia and previously in the 80's the USA. They also had a fair amount of revenue coming from the illicit sale of OIl through intermediaries in Jordan, Syria etc. So the backwater doesn't hold up.

I think you need to look at the Whole picture really, sort of the Geopolitical considerations (which the supply and future supply of oil plays a huge part in). There are some great, unbiased, scholarly books out there on the politics of the mid-east, oil and the war on Iraq.

As for invading other countries -


As our friends at CITGO seem to want to remind us, Venezuela has the largest crude oil reserves in the western Hemisphere, so they say although Canada has the worlds largest oil reserves in the form of Oil bearing sands (let's invade !). Anyways, my point is that Venezuela would be very easy to manipulate or even invade at this point. Yet why would we spend hundreds of billions of dollars to travel half way around the world to a country that is ethnically split and unstable without a force full Government in place and take over? Seems your argument is a bit flimsy in that area.

But then again, if your assumption is that this is a vast conspiracy and cover up, then a debate or pointing out facts is absolutely futile.


Happy Day, !

Answer 2

no, your information is completely false.

However the premise of invading Iraq for oil is not based upon getting the oil for free, it's to have a military presence in the region to make certain the oil supply is not cut off. The problem with that idea is that the logistics of gett the oil from there to here under hostile conditions would make it impossible to do so.

Russia is a much larger country, it is more modern, with more people and the ,military infrastructure, including ICBMs that will transport nuclear weapons to the US to consider that. The US had to find a backwater country that couldn't fight back, and after 10 years of poverty, Iraq was ripe for the illegal invasion.

from snopes...
The top six countries (by percentage of total USA imports) supplying crude oil to the USA in January 2002 were:

Saudi Arabia: 16.9%
Mexico: 15.1%
Canada: 15.0%
Venezuela: 14.4%
Iraq: 11.4%
Nigeria: 5.9.%

Answer 3

More proof is that Iraq's oil production has decreased significantly since the war started.

Answer 4

People can tell themselves' what they want...the oil is why they are they...it's needed to maintain current lifestyles...they can pretend that they are rebuilding and peacekeeping or whatever...it takes a long time to suck a country dry of their oil...so they will be there for awhile.

Answer 5

the US is in Iraq because Saddam tried to have Bush SR killed while he was president and Bush JR decided to pay him back for that. That is the only thing that makes sense to me

Answer 6

YES YES YES