1973 Arab Oil Embargo And Its Effect On The US

Energy Crisis (1970’s) states that the crisis officially began when the “Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) reduced their petroleum production and proclaimed an embargo on oil shipments to the United States and the Netherlands, the main supporters of Israel.” They did

In 1973, an oil crisis began when the members of the OAPEC (consisting of the Arab members of OPEC, plus Egypt, Syria and Tunisia) proclaimed an oil embargo in response to the United States decision to resupply the Israeli military during the Yom Kippur War. The embargo happened when 85% of American workers had to drive to work every day. President

Since the US decided to support the Israeli military and make a post-war peace negotiation with Egypt and Israel, known as the Camp David Accords, the Arab members of OPEC imposed an embargo against the United States cutting off their oil supply. In Document C it says, “Because of that war, most of the Middle Eastern oil producers have reduced overall production and cut off their shipments of oil to the United States.” Showing that not everyone agreed with America when it came to supporting Israeli military and that the Middle East has more control over American than we would like. Another reason the OPEC oil embargo happened is because of the Camp David Accords. In Document D it depicts a newspaper with the headline, “Egypt and Israel Sign Formal Treaty, Ending a State of War After 30 Years,” which shows that America wanted to gain allies in the Middle East and not everyone in the Middle East was happy about

The Middle East is one of the birthplaces of human kind’s civilization. Since the Ancient Egypt, Sumer, the Arab Empire, Turkey Empire, or even to present day, the Middle East has always been a valuable strategic point for not only because of its geographic location but also it full of petroleum and nature gas. According the OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) that 66% of the global oil reserves are in the Middle East and only 6% in North America, this makes a lot of powerful countries want to share a pieces of the Middle East, Stephen mentions “Much of the world 's oil wealth exists along the Persian Gulf, with particularly large reserves in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait

Benjamin Sovacool explains in his article that over the period of twelve years, the United States shale gas production increased 24.5 times the amount it produced in 1998. From 0.2 trillion cubic feet to an enormous 4.9 trillion cubic feet. Natural gas is also a huge financial benefit to North America. Before this drastic increase of fracking and natural gas production, the United States imported a clear majority of its oil and energy sources from the Middle East. This caused the middle east to obtain a control over the United States economic situation. For example, the 1979 oil embargo caused by OPEC (organization of petroleum exporting countries). According to Kimberly Amadeo, their decision to increase oil prices by a meager ten percent, caused oil rationing in the United States and worsened the already declining economy at this time. Since the increase in fracking and natural gas production, the U.S. has become decreasingly reliant on imported energy sources. Richard Janson denotes, that the impact of this influx of cheap gas has had many positive impacts on not only the economics of the energy industry, but foreign policy and the United States domestic policy. With the downfall in the need for imports for energy and the rise of hydraulic

“On October 17, 1973, Arab oil producers declared an embargo that drastically limited the shipment of oil to the United States” (OPEC 1). Arab countries refused to sell oil to the United States because of the Yom Kippur War, a war between Egypt and Israel. In this war, United states was backing up Israel by supporting them and giving them weapons, which angered Arab leaders. Arabs started limiting the shipment of oil to the United States. The embargo, however, brought crisis to the US with unequal proportions. US citizens were very panicky because of the shortage of gas and oil. Ultimately, the US economy slowed down, leaving its’ citizens to to be dependent on domestic resources. Shipment of oil in the country dropped by 1 million barrels,

It is easy to point out that prior to 1979 the US government should have done more to avoid such a heavy reliance on foreign oil. Fiscal policy, for years, was not properly structured to enable energy independence. During the Carter years, policies regarding energy use reduction primarily involved lowering the legal highway speed limit and by encouraging people to use less energy to cool and heat their buildings. Carter’s proposals for a broader energy program were constantly rejected by Congress.

During 1973-1974, with the dwindling of oil resources Americans were faced with the possibility of running out of oil. The Oil Embargo implemented by Arab members of The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries denied exporting oil to the states that supported Israel during the Arab-Israeli War. My questions about this event are how did this oil embargo change The United States and what did they do to adjust to all these changes? First the US had to figure out a new place they could get their oil from, they had to create new energy conservation movements and find new ways to create energy, and then finally they had to change how they looked at international business.

The embargo of oil shipments to the United States by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) resulted in a widespread national energy crisis which, to some degree, created the economic downturn.

On October 6, 1973, on the eve of Yom Kippur (the most holy day in the Jewish religion) Egypt attacked Israel. Israel proceeded to defend itself and for the third time since World War II the small Jewish state triumphed against one who greatly outnumbered it. The defeat humiliated the Arab nation; it retaliated with its most powerful weapon, an oil boycott. Arab members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) primarily aimed the oil embargo at the United States, for their decision to re-supply the Israeli military and gain advantage in the post-war peace negations. However OPEC members also protracted the embargo to other countries that supported Israel. These included the Netherlands, Portugal, and South Africa. The 1973 Oil Embargo acutely stained the U.S. economy, one that had grown increasingly dependent on foreign oil.

In 1973, the United States government restricted the export of domestically produced crude oil. At the time, this was largely regarded as a sound decision. Not only was domestic production in a decline, but the global political climate was fundamentally inhospitable. However, in recent years, the oil and gas industry has exploded into a huge upswing, due in no small part to the evolving technologies surrounding hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. Between 2009 and 2013, crude oil production in the United States increased by roughly 2.1 million barrels per day and, according to ICF estimates, is projected to increase another 3.2 million barrels per day through 2020 (ICF International 2014). This has led to a high profile discussion regarding the removal of the export ban which peaked in October of this year when President Barack Obama stood firm against repealing the ban, even threatening to veto the bill completely, despite the House of Representatives voting to pass it. With domestic oil and gas production at an all-time high, continuing with the ban makes little economic sense, and this report will further explain the belief behind why the ban should be repealed and why it would make a positive impact on independent exploration and production companies.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) was formed in 1960 to unify the policies of oil exporting countries in the Middle East (About Us). During the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, the United States and Netherlands helped Israel in this war with supplies. This angered OPEC countries and acted as a catalyst for the 1973 oil embargo (Reid). Many countries in OPEC and most notably Saudi Arabia, wanted Israel to retreat from territories they gained during the war (Reid). The embargo that resulted caught many Western countries flat footed and sparked a global recession.

In the Middle East, European colonialism obliterated Arab sovereignty through its political and economic takeover. After gaining independence, the epicenter of perceived encroachment of Arab autonomy by the West was found in the Jewish state of Israel. Furthermore, the United States’ military support of Israel was also seen as an extension of colonialism. The colonial legacy of the British and the French occupations in the Middle East led to the belief that Israel was another imperial force that would infringe upon the rights of the Arab world. To fuel its strong hatred of colonialism and Israel, the Arab states had the ability to harness their resources to pressure the international community to be less pro-Israel. The Middle East contains some of the world’s largest oil reserves, and this oil gives them a lot of economic clout because the use of oil for energy purposes is essential for nearly every nation’s survival. Most of the world has some degree of dependence on Arab oil, and the Arab states can use this power as political leverage. In an effort to utilize this oil power against Israel and its supporters, the Arab nations enacted oil production cutbacks and an oil embargo in 1973. To have an effective embargo, the participation of all Arab nations was necessary. Yet, the divisions and conflict within the Arab world prevented meaningful Arab unity, so they did not meet the political objectives of destroying Israel and its “imperialism”. The 1973 Oil Embargo was

Saudi Arabia is currently considered by the United States Government as a firm international trading partner for petroleum despite the multitudinous human rights violations blatantly executed by the despotic regime of the Arab nation. As a result of this trading with Saudi Arabia, the United States are fueling inhumane treatment of not only the foreign enemies of the Saudi state but also the inhumane treatment of Saudi Arabia’s own people domestically. The United States should immediately begin embargoing the undemocratic and oppressive regime of Saudi Arabia to undermine their government’s unjust actions; only by moving away from Saudi oil, is it plausible that the United States will be

It is historically proven that the long run economic growth of societies is significantly related on their vulnerability and resilience to energy shocks. [1] An energy shock or in other words an energy crisis is an event that occurs when the price of energy resources is sharply increased affecting the supply of major consuming sectors such as the national energy grids and transportation. High energy prices can also result high unemployment rates and rising food prices. A very well-known example of such a crisis was the 70s oil shock, which began in October 1973 when the members of the organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) proclaimed an oil embargo based on political causes against the United States and other countries