by Jacob Levich
Here's the prewar zeitgeist in a nutshell: In a widely reported January 16 speech, Tony Blair proclaimed that the impending invasion of Iraq "has nothing to do with oil, or any of the other conspiracy theories put forward."
One week later, Sen. Richard Lugar, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, quietly passed word to Russia and France that their countries will be frozen out of staggeringly lucrative postwar oil contracts unless they roll over and endorse the US attack.
Behind the Invasion of Iraq, the startling new book-length report authored by the Research Unit for Political Economy (RUPE), synthesizes the seemingly disparate threads of the US war drive in what amounts to a blistering indictment of American foreign policy. The report (available on the Web at www.rupe-india.org) is lavishly documented and jargon-free; the effect, especially for readers with limited understanding of global commerce and finance, is of puzzle pieces clicking decisively into place.
The RUPE report wholly confirms the widely-held view of the coming war as a massive oil grab, "on a scale not witnessed since the days of colonialism." Further, the current debate about arms inspections and alleged links to al-Qaeda is revealed as pure political theater, since the decision to invade Iraq was made months ago.
Links to the report
Why this Special Issue: India as a Pillar of US Hegemony
Behind the Invasion of Iraq (a summary)
Western Imperialism and Iraq:
From Colony to Semi-Colony
Towards Nationalisation
The Iran-Iraq War: Serving American Interests
The Torment of Iraq
Return of Imperialist Occupation
The Real Reasons for the Invasion of Iraq—and Beyond:
The Current Strategic Agenda of the United States
Home Front in Shambles
Military Solution to an Economic Crisis
Rehabilitating Colonialism
Appendices:
US Declares India a Strategic Pillar
The Pages Ripped out by the US from the Weapons Report
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