آداب الرافدين (Jun 1974)
The oil industry and the class struggle in the Middle East
Abstract
The Middle East oil industry occupies a prominent place in modern economic studies because of the great importance of this industry in the global and local economy on the one hand and because oil is of great importance as a strategic raw material indispensable for any country in the world on the other side in addition to the scarcity of this vital material and the lack of Availability and possibility of obtaining it in the rest of the world with regular efforts and at low costs. Until the beginning of the current century (1904) there was no oil industry in the Middle East for many reasons, perhaps the most important of which is the lack of high demand for oil, but with the increase in the importance of oil for its use and quality first and because it is a primary material for various industries. Earth to place it at its disposal and take advantage of it as an indispensable source of energy and fantastic profits. So, foreign capital flowed into countries and this industry is distinguished by being an extractive industry, meaning that the effectiveness of oil companies is limited to exploration, exploration and discovery of oil deposits and then extracting and selling crude to other countries, and it is also an industry linked to the economies of foreign countries and serves the economic interests of those countries more than their connection The economic interests of the countries of the region. Since the inception of this industry in the Middle East and until now, three major powers have wrestled. The question of the subsequent development of this industry depends on the outcome of this violent conflict, which acquires very complex and complex appearances and forms. The first of these powers are the foreign companies that represent the capitalist class in the colonial countries. All the capital invested in the Middle East oil industry was until recently funded and controlled by (eight international companies - five of which are American, one British, one British-Dutch and one French). The national capital did not enter this industry until very late. Up to the present time, the proportion of national capital invested in this industry is still very little for many reasons, the most important of which is the presence of foreign control controlling this industry and its stance against the contribution of national capital to building, managing and developing this industry.
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