Republicans Trying To Force Offshore Drilling On The Nation

Republican Presidential candidate John McCain claims that the global crude oil prices came down by $10 as soon as President Bush ended a moratorium on offshore oil drilling. John McCain, President Bush and a majority of the Republican Senators are trying to force the Congress to pass a bill allowing offshore oil drilling. McCain believes such a step would not only decrease America’s oil dependence on the Middle East nations some of which might use it as a leverage but would provide relief to the millions of citizens seething under record gasoline prices.

World Needs To Move Out Of OPEC’s ‘Oil Claw’

With the oil crisis straining economies of even the most financially stable nations it’s time that the world formulates & rethinks its energy security policies. For decades the western countries & the developing countries of Asia have been dependent on oil supplies from OPEC nations which have a total monopoly over world’s oil reserves. The need of a sound energy security policy arises from the fact that the oil producing nations, barring Saudi Arabia, have clearly refused to increase production even after repeated pleas from the world leaders.

With election season in full flow in the US & sharp decline in popularity of his government, President Bush & Prime Minister Brown are seeking deals with Middle east countries to make them increase oil production thus help cooling off the boiling oil prices. British PM Gordon Brown wishes to present a new proposal to the Middle east countries through which they would be entitled to hold majority stakes in the renewable energy projects in the western countries. According to the two-point ‘New Deal’:

Saudi Arabia and other oil producers, who are worried about the unpredictability of oil prices, which fell to $10 a barrel a decade ago, would be given the chance to take a major financial stake in the more stable market of renewable energy power in the west.

Britain and other western countries would help to improve the supply of oil in the long term by being given greater chances to invest in oilfields and oil refineries in Opec countries.

But the Prime Minister forgot that the deal would do nothing to end OPEC’s virtual oil monopoly. Brown plans to do the same thing which the US Congress voted against few years back. Refusing to give operational control of major seaports to a middle east company the decision caused a global diplomatic row. If even the new energy projects are placed under the financial controls of the middle east countries how will they be able to achieve the so called ‘energy independence’.

American Tug-of-war Over Offshore Oil Drilling

Republican Presidential candidate and President George W Bush have urged the US Congress to lift the ban offshore oil drilling. They claim that the step would help ease the boiling oil prices and would serve as a the first step towards end of foreign oil dependence. Although a majority of the US public wants offshore oilfields to be opened for the oil companies the Democrats oppose such a step while Republicans overwhelmingly support it.