The
War On Lebanon And
The Battle For Oil
By Michel Chossudovsky
28 July, 2006
GlobalResearch
Is
there a relationship between the bombing of Lebanon and the inauguration
of the World's largest strategic pipeline, which will channel more than
a million barrels of oil a day to Western markets?
Virtually unnoticed, the
inauguration of the Ceyhan-Tblisi-Baku (BTC) oil pipeline, which links
the Caspian sea to the Eastern Mediterranean, took place on the 13th
of July, at the very outset of the Israeli sponsored bombings of Lebanon.
One day before the Israeli
air strikes, the main partners and shareholders of the BTC pipeline
project, including several heads of State and oil company executives
were in attendance at the port of Ceyhan. They were then rushed off
for an inauguration reception in Istanbul, hosted by Turkey's President
Ahmet Necdet Sezer in the plush surroundings of the Çýraðan
Palace.
Also in attendance was British
Petroleum's (BP) CEO, Lord Browne together with senior
government officials from Britain, the US and Israel. BP leads the BTC
pipeline consortium. Other major Western shareholders include Chevron,
Conoco-Phillips, France's Total and Italy's ENI. (see Annex)
Israel's Minister of Energy
and Infrastructure Binyamin Ben-Eliezer was present at the venue together
with a delegation of top Israeli oil officials.
The BTC pipeline totally
bypasses the territory of the Russian Federation. It transits through
the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Georgia, both of which
have become US "protectorates", firmly integrated into a military
alliance with the US and NATO. Moreover, both Azerbaijan and Georgia
have longstanding military cooperation agreements with Israel.
Israel has a stake in the
Azeri oil fields, from which it imports some twenty percent of its oil.
The opening of the pipeline will substantially enhance Israeli oil imports
from the Caspian sea basin.
But there is another dimension
which directly relates to the war on Lebanon. Whereas Russia has been
weakened, Israel is slated to play a major strategic role in "protecting"
the Eastern Mediterranean transport and pipeline corridors out of Ceyhan.
Militarization of
the Eastern Mediterranean
The bombing of Lebanon is
part of a carefully planned and coordinated military road map. The extension
of the war into Syria and Iran has already been contemplated by US and
Israeli military planners. This broader military agenda is intimately
related to strategic oil and oil pipelines. It is supported by the Western
oil giants which control the pipeline corridors. In the context of the
war on Lebanon, it seeks Israeli territorial control over the East Mediterranean
coastline.
In this context, the BTC
pipeline dominated by British Petroleum, has dramatically changed the
geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean, which is now linked , through
an energy corridor, to the Caspian sea basin:
"[The BTC pipeline]
considerably changes the status of the region's countries and cements
a new pro-West alliance. Having taken the pipeline to the Mediterranean,
Washington has practically set up a new bloc with Azerbaijan, Georgia,
Turkey and Israel, " (Komerzant, Moscow, 14 July 2006)
Israel is now part of the
Anglo-American military axis, which serves the interests of the Western
oil giants in the Middle East and Central Asia.
While the official reports
state that the BTC pipeline will "channel oil to Western markets",
what is rarely acknowledged is that part of the oil from the Caspian
sea would be directly channeled towards Israel. In this regard, an underwater
Israeli-Turkish pipeline project has been envisaged which would link
Ceyhan to the Israeli port of Ashkelon and from there through Israel's
main pipeline system, to the Red Sea.
The objective of Israel is
not only to acquire Caspian sea oil for its own consumption needs but
also to play a key role in re-exporting Caspian sea oil back to the
Asian markets through the Red Sea port of Eilat. The strategic implications
of this re-routing of Caspian sea oil are farreaching.
In April 2006, Israel and
Turkey announced plans for four underwater pipelines, which would bypass
Syrian and Lebanese territory.
"Turkey and Israel
are negotiating the construction of a multi-million-dollar energy and
water project that will transport water, electricity, natural gas and
oil by pipelines to Israel, with the oil to be sent onward from Israel
to the Far East,
The new Turkish-Israeli
proposal under discussion would see the transfer of water, electricity,
natural gas and oil to Israel via four underwater pipelines.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1145961328841&
pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
“Baku oil can be
transported to Ashkelon via this new pipeline and to India and the Far
East.[via the Red sea]"
"Ceyhan and the
Mediterranean port of Ashkelon are situated only 400 km apart. Oil can
be transported to the city in tankers or via specially constructed under-water
pipeline. From Ashkelon the oil can be pumped through already existing
pipeline to the port of Eilat at the Red Sea; and from there it can
be transported to India and other Asian countries in tankers. (REGNUM
)
Water for Israel
Also involved in this project
is a pipeline to bring water to Israel, pumping water from upstream
resources of the Tigris and Euphrates river system in Anatolia. This
has been a long-run strategic objective of Israel to the detriment of
Syria and Iraq. Israel's agenda with regard to water is supported by
the military cooperation agreement between Tel Aviv and Ankara.
The Re-routing of
Central Asian Oil
Diverting Central Asian oil
and gas to the Eastern Mediterranean (under Israeli military protection),
for re-export to Asia, serves to undermine the inter-Asian energy market,
which is based on the development of direct pipeline corridors linking
Central Asia and Russia to South Asia, China and the Far East.
Ultimately, this design is
intended to weaken Russia's role in Central Asia and cut off China from
Central Asian oil resources. It is also intended to isolate Iran.
Meanwhile, Israel has emerged
as a new powerful player in the global energy market.
War and Oil Pipelines
Prior to the bombing of Lebanon,
Israel and Turkey had announced the underwater pipeline routes, which
bypassed Syria and Lebanon. These underwater pipeline routes did not
overtly encroach on the territorial sovereignty of Lebanon and Syria.
On the other hand, the development
of alternative land based corridors (for oil and water) through Lebanon
and Syria would require Israeli-Turkish territorial control over the
Eastern Mediterranean coastline through Lebanon and Syria.
The implementation of this
project requires the militarisation of the East Mediterranean coastline,
sea ways and land routes, extending from the port of Ceyhan across Syria
and Lebanon to the Lebanese-Israeli border.
Is this not one of the hidden
objectives of the war on Lebanon? Open up a space which enables Israel
to control a vast territory extending from the Lebanese border through
Syria to Turkey.
"The Long War"
Israeli Prime minister Ehud
Olmert has stated that the Israeli offensive against Lebanon would "last
a very long time". Meanwhile, the US has speeded up weapons shipments
to Israel.
There are strategic objectives
underlying the "Long War" which are tied to oil and oil pipelines.
The air campaign against
Lebanon is inextricably related to US-Israeli strategic objectives in
the broader Middle East including Syria and Iran. In recent developments,
Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice stated that the main purpose of her
mission to the Middle East was not to push for a ceasefire in Lebanon,
but rather to isolate Syria and Iran. (Daily Telegraph, 22 July 2006)
At this particular juncture,
the replenishing of Israeli stockpiles of US produced WMDs points to
an escalation of the war both within and beyond the borders of Lebanon.