‘Big Oil’ is the forgotten factor in Iraq war debate

Topic of the week: the Chilcot report

IN the immediate aftermath of the Chilcot report, what’s extraordinary is the absence of comment on the importance of oil in the US and British decision to invade Iraq. Media coverage in the US has headlined “Big Oil” as the major factor. Indeed, Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, wrote specifically in a memoir: “I am saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: the Iraq war is largely about oil.”

What this tells us is that the actual motivation for starting the Iraq war so as to remove Saddam Hussein was because he had nationalised the massive Iraqi oil fields and was threatening no longer to use petro-dollars. This so alarmed US oil interests that the US government made efforts to blame Saddam for the 9/11 attacks. The CIA planted stories about this in various Western newspapers, but these stories were false.

From 2003 onwards, the US oil industry colluded with the US government to amend Iraqi law, post-invasion, in order to privatise the oil fields and enable US companies to take over. This duly happened. This is now being extensively reported on in the US media (eg CNN) but has been, and is being, missed by Chilcot in the present discussions.

In answer to a question from me at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Robin Cook admitted that “oil was a component” in the rationale for the invasion; and, of course, that was why he had resigned over the issue. Furthermore, a detailed dossier on the prelude to the Iraq war was prepared by Jim Sillars and submitted to the Lord Advocate for consideration of a prosecution of Tony Blair. Nothing was done. But this is now a live issue once more and should be acted on, using legislative powers open to the Scottish Parliament. Randolph Murray Rannoch RON McKay’s analysis of the deception leading to the Iraq war is clear and concise (Blair carries on lying today to protect himself from the lies he has already told, Chilcot special report, July 10). It leaves no doubt that the UK was used as a tool of US imperial foreign policy in the Middle East. Today, a devalued Westminster Parliament hurries to force through Trident while helping to enhance military activity in Eastern Europe. A puppet on the strings of the American policy of global supremacy, are we again dancing to the tune of the financial one per cent with the UK taxpayer back in the trenches?

Once upon a time such behaviour could land a citizen in the Tower of London facing the ancient charge of subverting the Government, otherwise known as treason. Nor, in the interests of we the marching anti-war million, should the top brass be allowed to hide behind “just following orders”. All success to Rose Gentle and Alex Salmond: many aspects of international justice rest upon seeing some faces behind bars. Iain R Thomson Cannich