DEADLY PETRO-IMPERIALISM OF USA
Global Affairs Session 17 17 April 2026 DEADLY PETRO-IMPERIALISM OF USA Oil power, Big Oil and the politics of intervention This session examines the argument that American power in oil-rich regions is shaped by petro-imperialism: the use of political, economic and military influence to secure energy interests. It connects fossil-fuel dependence, global oil reserves, Big Oil’s influence over United States politics and the consumer cost of military escalation, while invoking Smedley Butler’s warning about war and business.