Bush’s annual speech leaves no impact on oil producers - by Nicholas Wilson
US President George Bush should have checked his facts about oil before his annual speech. His claims to cut dependence on Middle East oil will not do any favours to the already drooping American image in this part of the world. Also, his rhetoric about not needing oil from the Middle East may just be music to the Asian consumers’ ears, according to most industry insiders. Analysts like Muhammed Ali Zainy from the Centre for Global Energy Studies believes that the message was purely political and meant only for sending signals within the party about foreign policies. “The president’s vision is completely unrealistic, and the speech was only to stir up patriotic fervour among voters.”
Zainy also believes, however, that it was irresponsible for the world’s largest energy consumer to make statements about cutting down Middle East oil by 75%. “Such statements do not particularly encourage the producers who are currently spending billions of dollars on expanding production facilities.”
Alhajji says that the rhetoric has been repeated for over 30 years by various presidents, and US oil imports have only continued to grow. Even if Bush’s efforts for hybrid cars and ethanol fuels are noble, his intention to diminish the powers of Saudi Arabia as an oil exporter will never materialise, agree analysts. EU-DIGEST: "Regardless of the rhetoric - do we detect some nervousness in this article? The largest consumers of fossil fuels in the world better continue to aggressively develop alternative sources of energy. Oil cartels, like organized religion are the prime source of Global unrest."
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