Far beneath the surface of the tragic drama of Somalia, four major U.S. oil companies are quietly sitting on a prospective fortune in exclusive concessions to explore and exploit tens of millions of acres of the Somali countryside.
That land, in the opinion of geologists and industry sources, could yield significant amounts of oil and natural gas if the U.S.-led military mission can restore peace to the impoverished East African nation.
According to documents obtained by The Times, nearly two-thirds of Somalia was allocated to the American oil giants Conoco, Amoco, Chevron and Phillips in the final years before Somalia’s pro-U.S. President Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown and the nation plunged into chaos in January, 1991. Industry sources said the companies holding the rights to the most promising concessions are hoping that the Bush Administration’s decision to send U.S. troops to safeguard aid shipments to Somalia will also help protect their multimillion-dollar investments there.
Officially, the Administration and the State Department insist that the U.S. military mission in Somalia is strictly humanitarian. Oil industry spokesmen dismissed as “absurd” and “nonsense” allegations by aid experts, veteran East Africa analysts and several prominent Somalis that President Bush, a former Texas oilman, was moved to act in Somalia, at least in part, by the U.S. corporate oil stake.
But corporate and scientific documents disclosed that the American companies are well positioned to pursue Somalia’s most promising potential oil reserves the moment the nation is pacified. And the State Department and U.S. military officials acknowledge that one of those oil companies has done more than simply sit back and hope for pece.
From Bloomberg Yesterday.
The U.S. military is considering attacks on pirate bases on land and aid for the Somali people to help stem ship hijackings off Africa’s east coast, defense officials said.
The military also is drawing up proposals to aid the fledgling Somalia government to train security forces and develop its own coast guard, said the officials, who requested anonymity. The plans will be presented to the Obama administration as it considers a coordinated U.S. government and international response to piracy, the officials said.
Ironically, from Rush Limbaugh, today…
To say that the military’s come up with a plan that they’re going to present to the president — that’s not how it works here. This is Obama’s plan. He’s presented it to the military. Here’s our brave new president. He does great things. So we’re going to tell the Somalis, “It’s up to you to stop your own pirates. We’re going to give you you’re own Coast Guard, going to train a Coast Guard, and you stop it.” It sounds like exactly what the game plan was in Iraq. But I don’t know how we’re going to feed the people of Somalia again. We fed ’em back in the nineties, and now we got starving Americans. Have you seen the stories of all the homeless people? Have you seen the stories of all the starving Americans? And we’re going to feed the Somalis again, for the second time in 15 years? Don’t be fooled, folks. Do not be fooled. We’re going to Somalia for the oil. We’re heading in there to do whatever we can to deplete that country of its natural resources as punishment for their sending pirates out there. The only thing not explained in this story is what President Obama’s exit strategy will be from Somalia. But we’ll just have to wait as that unfolds.
In February 2007, President Bush announced the creation of a unified military command for Africa. This puts the continent on par, in the Pentagon’s eyes and command structure, with the Pacific Rim (Pacific Command), Europe (European Command), Latin America (Southern Command), the Middle East (Central Command), and North America (Northern Command). The Pentagon and many military analysts argue the continent’s growing strategic importance necessitates a dedicated regional command. But some experts suggest the command’s creation was motivated by more specific concerns: China and oil. With Soviet influence gone and France’s traditional presence much diminished, China has poured money into the continent in recent years as it jockeys for access to natural resources. And the United States is projected to import at least 25 percent of its oil from Africa by 2015, according to the National Intelligence Council.
Looks like those pirates played right into the Pentagons hands.
