Iraqi War Price $13 per Barrel

Hong Kong’s online newspaper Asia Times, one of the key Internet editions in Asia, informs that the war against Iraq will cost 13 dollars per barrel. It is also said that Russia’s economic interests will be damaged even more than forecasted, which is why the Russian leadership is unlikely to approve of any hostilities against Iraq.

Asia Times forecasts that, following the overthrow of the Iraqi government, the USA will launch a similar war to establish American control over Iran, which will maintain stable and low oil prices.

The newspaper informs with reference to “a Moscow politician who recently visited the USA” that officials from the US State Department reported the price that the US Administration wants to maintain: 13 dollars per barrel.

Russian Minister of Energy Igor Yusufov said during his visit to the USA at the Russia-America Houston Summit that Russia would like the price of oil to be within the limits of 20-25 dollars per barrel. President of Russia’s Yukos oil company Mikhail Khodorkovsky informed at a recent investment conference in New York that 14 dollars per barrel was the lowest possible limit his company can withstand. If the information from the Asia Times is true, the consequences of the US war against Iraq might be even worse than the cessation of Russian oil exports to the US market. Russian oil exports will no longer be needed, and Russia will suffer deadly losses from the decline in oil prices.

In this case, the intentions of Russian oil companies to enter the NY Stock Exchange with a view to abruptly increase their worth will be frustrated. This means that American investors, who pay little attention to the Russian energy sector under the present-day high prices, will hardly like to invest in long-term projects with a vague prospect of return under conditions of unprecedented low prices.

The online newspaper informs that “no matter how the USA estimates the cost of Russia’s interests in Iraq, and it doesn’t matter to what extent the actions of the US administration can be unpredictable and unreliable; the price Russia’s economy is to pay for the landslide of oil prices will be much higher than predicted. It is reported that no extraordinary measures designed to save the Russian energy sector will help if Bush overthrows Saddam and lowers price of oil.”

Translated by Maria Gousseva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/10/14/48373.html

Related links: