A POST 1973 OIL EMBAGO OPEC: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS?

The organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) came into lime light when it imposed an embargo on the western developed nations that were dependent on oil in 1973 due to the Arab- Israeli war. The embargo had dire consequences on the economies and every day activities of affected nations such that it became clear that a politics of scarcity amongst oil producers will continue to be a very important strategy as long as the criticality of oil continues in the global community. The embargo created awareness that it was possible for countries that were economically underdeveloped to be economically powerful in such a way and manner that even countries that are developed economically could be brought to their knees by those that are economically less developed but appreciably economically powerful. Oil had for some years before the embargo, created an entirely new dimension in global politics in which those that are disadvantaged in areas of economy, military, politics and technology are placed at a very serious advantage through abundant reserves of a product that is not only critical to the economies of the West but for which the West had great shortage. In essence, even before the embargo was ever imposed, it had become very clear that oil could easily be used as a means of power by those that possessed it in abundance against those that were reliant and dependent on it. It can therefore be ascertained that oil politics was strongly about the politics of scarcity and the case of the 1973 oil embargo properly asserted the assumption. This work is aimed at analyzing the 1973 oil embargo, its attendant effect on the western developed nations, the events after the embargo especially in relation to the continued existence of a politics of scarcity and why specifically has such politics not been witnessed again after the 1973 successful attempt. The work will therefore critically access if OPEC has had its power reduced between 1973 and now and if such is responsible for the absence of the politics of scarcity. The work will equally find out if internal wrangling within OPEC had made impossible the events of the 1973 oil embargo repeating itself or if certain strategies of OPEC are deficient and have therefore served as a big obstacle at exploring a politics of scarcity towards a more powerful OPEC.