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glaring question mark for the fu–
ture. Experts around the world are
voicing their growing concern. ' 'Our
society, our position in the world,
and our very way of life is being
threatened," they increasingly warn.
Yet in spite of the many voices
raised
in
concern, the gravity of the
situation in many corners is not yet
apparent. For most, the pinch of a
real energy shortage has yet to make
itself felt.
James Akins, Director ofthe U. S.
State Department's Office of Fuels
and Energy, titled bis 30-page ex–
posé published in
Foreign Affaírs
magazine: "The Oil Crisis: This
Time the Wolf Is Here."
In August 1972, Akins stat.ed that
"today the world is consuming 45
million barreis of oil a day, and by
1980 that figure will be 80 to lOO
million barreis. We don' t know
where this oil will come from. "
What do these statistics mean in
actual fact? The average figure of 90
million barreis per day that we are
estimated to need 6 years from now
for total worldwide consumption
would
fill
a train of oil tank _¡;ars
stretching 3,000 miles (4,827 kilome–
ters) - a train that would stretch
completely across the United States!
The same train would cover the dis–
tance from London, England to
Athens, Greece, back north to Thes–
salonike and over to Istanbul,
Turkey!
Western Europe, the United
States and Japan together consume
80% of the world's available energy
and 80% of the world's daily oil pro–
duction. The demands that are
being made call for bigger and big–
ger quantities every day. The oil
world is simply not geared to meet
these burgeoning demands.
The Effect on Europe
The United States has recently
sought to create a consortium of oil–
consuming nations with Europe aod
Japan to streogthen their bargaining
positions for adequate supplies of
Middle East oil.
Japan, for its part, was concerned
by Petroleum Minister Yamani's
20
warning that such a consumer's car–
tel against OPEC (Organization of
Petroleum Exporting Countries)
could mean a petroleum "war." Af–
ter a Middle East tour, Yasuhiro
Nakasone, the head of Japan's Min–
istry of Intemational Trade and In–
dustry, said that Japan cannot
accept a "common front" of oil–
importing nations.
European officials, too, are reluc–
tant to enter into a unified approach
with the United States for fear that
the Arabs will boycott them as well.
There's another twist to this
dilemma. D ue to the huge ex–
penditures the United States will
have to make for oil in the near
future, U. S. strategists note that
ti-
United States would seek to in–
fluence, persuade or force its own oi l
companies to put U. S. interests first
in the event of a serious shortage.
On commercial grounds alone, these
companies have substantially larger
markets in the United States than in
Europe. They could very well feel
that the United States has a prior
claim on whatever supplies of for–
eign oil they can secure.
These foreign supplies are becom–
ing more and more important. By
1985 the United States will be need–
ing close to 12 million barreis a day.
imported by sea. Admira! Elmo R.
Zumwalt, U. S. Chief of Naval Op–
erations, estirnated " this will require
the equivalent of from severa! hun-
The Persian Gulf lifeline and the entire Middle
East increases in importance every day. The rea–
son is simple. The Middle East has a staggering
62°/o
of the TOTAL PROVEN 0/L RESERVES!
nancial cutbacks will force major
withdrawals of U. S. military forces
overseas - withdrawals that neither
the United States nor Europe has
wanted, in view of the ever-increas–
ing military strength of the U.S.S.R.
(which has its own oil reserves).
Europe is in a bind. Adding to the
military question of finding itself
defensively crippled, Europe must
realize that of the seven major oil
companies actually producing oil in
the Middle East , five are U. S. con–
trolled. All members of the enlarged
European Community rely on these
U. S. owned companies for much of
their irnported oil. Warned the Loo–
don
Times,
"Europe could not stand
on its own in the event of a crisis."
In
June 1967, during the Six-Day
War, the United States was able to
supply the irnmediate needs of Eu–
rope and Japan when the Arabs cut
off supplies to Western-aligned na–
tions. That support
is
no longer pos–
sible due to the lack of reserve
capacity facing the world today.
Older U. S. oil fields, for example,
are now in their twilight years.
I t appears obvious that the
dred to over 1,000 tankers, each of
70,000 tons, fully committed to de–
liveries of oil to the U. S."
Jugular of Modern
Civilization
The Middle East, called the
"cradle of civilization," would be
better termed the "jugular vein of
modero civilization." An oil tanker
glides through the waters of the
Straits of Hormuz at the entrance to
the oil-rich Persian Gulf
every ten
minutes,
laden with a cargo of oil
destined to provide light , heat or
electricity somewhere in the world.
Each tanker moving along this life–
line is a veritable heartbeat, moving
the life-giving energy source that
keeps the modero world in motion.
This Persian Gulf lifeline and the
entire Middle East increases in im–
portance every day. The reason is
simple. The Middle East has a stag–
gering 62% of the
total proven oil
reserves!
Since Europe and Japan have
no
major reserves of oil, the Middle
East and North Africa supply be–
tween 85% and 90% of Westem Eu-
PLAIN TRUTH October 1973