Here’s a deeper dive on how the oil industry impacts international security, particularly in the context of the current invasion of Ukraine. I’ll try to give an overview, and you can click the numerous links for more.

Oil is the leading cause of war in the world. The aggression that we are seeing from Russia is the latest in a series of conflicts that have been fuelled by our world’s dependence on oil & gas, with the US invasion of Iraq being one example. What’s more, the actions of the oil & gas industry have contributed heavily to climate change itself, which has destabilising multiplier effects on conflict as seen in the Syrian war, and the current water scarcity in Israeli-oppressed Palestine.

Russia could never have become an oil & gas superpower without the investment of companies like Shell, Exxon Mobil, and BP, and our world’s dependence on these commodities. Russia is the world’s second largest oil producer in the world, ahead of Saudi Arabia, and has the world’s largest proven reserves of natural gas. Fuelling this conflict are three things, covered in this excellent explainer:

1. Ukraine’s critical role as a geographical buffer for Russia against NATO countries, and its recent alignment away from Russia with the election of West-leaning President Zelensky over the Putin-friendly former president.

2. Ukraine’s recent discovery of huge natural gas reserves (early 2010s, just before Crimea), which threatens Russia’s supremacy as Europe’s primary supplier of oil & gas. 

3. Severe water shortages on the Russia-controlled Crimean peninsula due to climate change-induced droughts and a blockage by Ukraine of the North Crimean Canal, resulting in crop failure and loss of arable land. Invading Ukraine would allow Russia to gain control over the canal.

Fossil fuel companies are trying to capitalise on the situation by pushing for more domestic production of petrochemicals, and lobbying for weaker sanctions on Russia both in the past and during this week. This is despite the fact that fossil fuels are a dead end for our planet and our economy. The market is changing rapidly in the face of the reality of climate change, with consumer pressures, emissions caps, and carbon pricing making it less profitable to invest in fossil fuels. Given these market pressures and the available renewable energy tech, bloody wars over fossil fuels are truly fruitless for all sides including the aggressors. Most of all, they are devastating for civilians who find their lives torn apart by the death throes of these petrostates and the big Western corporations that fund them.

The pervasive role of oil and natural gas in this crisis–as a funding source for Russia’s military, a flashpoint for Russian aggression, and a threatened energy and economic weapon against European countries that come to Ukraine’s aid–demonstrates yet again how fossil fuels undermine international peace and stability rather than support it.

- CIEL Statement in Solidarity with the People of Ukraine, Center for International Environmental Law

For all of these reasons, it is critically important for governments to rapidly move off fossil fuels towards renewable energy. A slow transition only increases the risk of more desperate, oil-fuelled petro-aggression, creating unnecessary suffering while hindering humanity’s capacity to work together against the real common enemy: anthropogenic climate change.

We can do this by:

• Seeing past the greenwashing of petrol companies

• Holding oil & gas corporations accountable

• Advocating for local, community-owned renewable energy like we’re seeing in parts of Europe

• Pressuring politicians to eliminate dependence on fossil fuels in all aspects of our economy