A Dark, Exploitative Century of Imperialism

From orchestrating coups to supporting oppressive regimes, the West has consistently interfered in the politics and economies of oil-rich Middle Eastern regions, ensuring that its stranglehold on one of the modern world’s most precious resources remains unchallenged.

At the heart of this unrest lies the relentless pursuit of a resource so valuable that it has driven some of the most egregious acts of imperialist violence in modern history.

Imperialism in the Oil Industry

Since the dawn of industrialization, few forces have shaped global politics and economics as profoundly as oil.

Virtually all of the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East, whether civil wars, foreign interventions, or brutal military campaigns, can be traced back to a century-long history of exploitation by Western powers.

The ensuing atrocities, to which we bear witness even today, have been nothing more than a continuation of the initial actions of the members of an international cartel known as the Seven Sisters, each of whom sliced up for themselves the resources of an entire region to which he had no claim.

The current incarnation of this ilk still seeks to justify the subjugation of entire nations and the destabilization of governments in the name of continued profitering.

The Birth of a Cartel

The origins of the Seven Sisters cartel can be traced back to a secret meeting at Akhnakari Castle in Scotland on August 28, 1928.

By the late 1920s, the number of automobiles on the road skyrocketed from a mere 8,000 in 1900, to a staggering 20 million. This exponential rise in cars meant that the demand for oil—once a relatively minor commodity—became a crucial driver of industrial and economic expansion.

Behind the closed doors of the Akhnakari rendezvous, three men crafted a plan to exert control over the flow of this suddenly necessary resource.

These men were Henri Deterding, managing director of Royal Dutch Shell, Sir John Cadman, chairman of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (Now BP), and Walter C. Teagle, the president of Standard Oil, and grandson of Maurice B. Clark, with whom John D. Rockefeller founded the company that would eventually become Standard Oil.

Their pact, shrouded in secrecy, was no mere business meeting; it set about the capitalistic exploitation of an entire region as a means of exerting control over nations and their natural wealth.

In their haste to extract oil, safety measures were neglected, and the lives of local workers and residents were treated as expendable. The violent discharge of oil from the ground in Kirkuk resulted in explosions and fires that claimed the lives of several workers.

The chaotic scene of uncontrolled oil gushing from the earth, coupled with the loss of life, was a foreshadowing of the decades of tumult that would follow.

The Middle East Becomes a Battleground

The Middle East, rich in oil, became a prime target for the Seven Sisters. Through the Red Line Agreement, brokered by Armenian oil magnate Calouste Gulbenkian, these companies carved up the region like a colonial pie.

The Iraq Petroleum Company, formed under this agreement, was emblematic of the broader imperialistic agenda. The people of the Middle East were kept in the dark, their resources bartered away in deals that left them with nothing but the scars of exploitation.

In Iran, the Anglo-Persian Oil Company (later BP) operated with impunity. The Abadan refinery, the largest in the world, generated immense wealth for the British Empire while the Iranian people received negligible royalties.

The Shah of Iran, complicit in this arrangement, turned a blind eye to the suffering of his people, satisfied with the crumbs thrown his way by the British.

The U.S. and Saudi Arabia: A Faustian Bargain

The United States, recognizing the strategic importance of oil, forged a controversial alliance (one that continues to this day) with Saudi Arabia. In 1945, President Franklin D. Roosevelt met with King Ibn Saud, solidifying a deal that would exchange American protection for access to Saudi oil.

The creation of ARAMCO, a consortium dominated by American oil companies, further entrenched this relationship. To put it mildly, this was no equal partnership. ARAMCO wielded more power than the Saudi government itself, dictating terms, rubberstamping perpetuous one-sided arrangements, and extracting vast wealth from the desert kingdom while keeping the Saudi people in a state of dependency.

Strategic Outposts for Western Interests

While these power moves and secret dealings continued to effectively slice up the map, Western nations and corporate entities set out to protect their interests in the Middle East, especially amidst the turmoil that was resulting from the oil rush.

The creation of Israel in 1948 emerged as a huge boon the United States and allied interests in Middle East.

The establishment of Israel, heavily influenced and supported by the United States and its Western allies, provided the West with an ostensible “democratic” foothold in an otherwise volatile region.

For the Seven Sisters and their allies, Israel served as more than just a new nation-state; it was a strategic outpost through which they could secure their interests and carry out their activities with relative impunity.

Israel's presence offered a counterbalance to the increasingly assertive Arab nations that were challenging Western control, particularly through OPEC and the nationalization of oil resources.

With Israel as a reliable ally, the U.S. and its oil partners had a critical partner in the region that could support their broader geopolitical strategies, ensuring the uninterrupted flow of oil while also acting as a buffer against potential regional threats.

Resistance and Rebellion: Nationalization Meets Imperialism

As the violence of the King David Hotel bombing and the Nakba were unfolding on the other side of the Transjordan Emirate, the imperialist interests of the West were beginning to learn that there were limits to their unchecked power.

In 1951, Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh attempted to wrest control of his nation’s oil from British hands by nationalizing the industry. This was an effort to finally allow the indigenous people of Iran to receive fair compensation for the resources that had, up until then, been exploited since the early 20th century. The Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (AIOC), later known as British Petroleum (BP), had been extracting vast amounts of wealth from Iran’s oil fields while paying the Iranian government a fraction of the profits.

For decades, the riches of Iran’s natural resources flowed out of the country, enriching British coffers while the Iranian people lived in poverty and underdevelopment. Mossadegh’s nationalization was a bold move to rectify this historical injustice, aiming to ensure that the wealth generated from Iranian oil would benefit the Iranian people rather than foreign interests.

His defiance was met with swift and brutal retribution.

The British-American Coup Against Iran

The British government, outraged by the loss of its most profitable overseas asset, responded by imposing an economic blockade on Iran. They used their influence to ensure that no country or company would purchase Iranian oil, effectively crippling the Iranian economy.

Of course, the response didn’t stop with the debilitating embargo, Britain, also sought to destabilize Mossadegh’s government from within.

Enlisting the support of the United States, the Seven Sisters floated the narrative that the nationalization was a threat to Western interests, particularly during the Cold War when there were fears of Soviet influence in Iran. The U.S., initially hesitant, eventually agreed to intervene.

The CIA, working with the British intelligence agency MI6, orchestrated a coup, known as Operation Ajax. This coup aimed to overthrow Mossadegh and reinstate the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

The CIA funneled money to Iranian operatives and military officers loyal to the Shah, orchestrating protests and riots to create the appearance of widespread opposition to Mossadegh. On August 19, 1953, the plan culminated in a successful overthrow of Mossadegh’s democratically elected government. He was arrested, tried, and sentenced to house arrest, where he remained until his death.

The shah, who was more amenable to Western interests, was anything but when it came to the people under his rule. Reza used the secret police, known as SAVAK, to suppress political dissent.

The Rise of OPEC: A Challenge to the Status Quo

The formation of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 1960 marked a turning point in the global oil industry. Founded by Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait, OPEC sought to wrest control of oil pricing from the hands of the Seven Sisters.

Initially dismissed by the West, OPEC's influence grew, culminating in the 1973 oil embargo that sent shockwaves through the global economy. This embargo resulted in record profits for these companies, who had long prepared for such an eventuality.

The oil majors, with their vast global networks and strategic reserves, were able to capitalize on the soaring oil prices, further consolidating their financial power.

Meanwhile, the embargo exposed the vulnerabilities of the global economy's reliance on oil, yet the Seven Sisters, with their deep entrenchment in the industry, maneuvered to maintain their dominance. The irony was bitter: the very nations that sought to challenge the imperial powers found themselves inadvertently enriching them.

Nevertheless, the Seven Sisters adapted, leveraging their established infrastructure and political influence to navigate the new landscape, ensuring that the flow of profits remained uninterrupted, even in the face of a geopolitical upheaval intended to check their power.

A Legacy of Exploitation

The saga of the Seven Sisters is not just a tale of corporate success; it is a chronicle of exploitation and imperialism, two hallmarks of capitalistic opportunism. For nearly a century, these companies have extracted wealth from nations, leaving behind a trail of death, poverty, conflict, and environmental degradation.

For a century, the people of the Middle East have paid the price for the West’s insatiable thirst for oil. Meanwhile, the struggle for control over natural resources continues to shape global politics, and the sins of the past appear to be little more than a roadmap for the future.

The Human Cost of Corporate Greed

The toll of this relentless pursuit of control over oil has been staggering. The same forces that shaped the dynamics of oil exploitation in the early 20th century continue to fuel conflict and instability across the globe. In the Middle East, wars have been waged, governments toppled, and entire populations displaced in battles where control over oil has often been a central, though sometimes unspoken, motive.

The 1991 Gulf War, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the ongoing turmoil in regions like Syria and Yemen all bear the hallmarks of struggles where oil, or the strategic interests tied to it, plays a critical role. These conflicts have left deep scars, with millions of lives lost or shattered, communities destroyed, and nations left in ruins.

These enduring conflicts serve as a sobering example of the dangers inherent in a system that values profit over people, and control over compassion.

At some point, something’s got to give; there must be a collective reckoning with the past and a commitment to building a more equitable and just global order, If the world is to move beyond the seemingly endless cycle of exploitation and conflict.