Canada's Oil Sands Are Promoting Peace -- Commentary

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The Sands Of Peace -- National Post

Russia’s energy supplies enabled their aggression, Canada’s supply could be the placating alternative

"When it comes to action over Georgia, Russia has the European Union over a barrel. In fact, 1.2 million barrels. That’s how much Russian crude is pumped westward every day down the Druzhba pipeline to fuel Europe’s economies.”

So began an article in The International Herald Tribune, one of many last week explaining why Europe — and the west — has little choice but to sacrifice parts of Georgia, and maybe a lot more, to Russia’s ambitions.

“Russia knows that when it comes to conducting a serious foreign and security policy, Europe is all mouth,” says Lord Chris Patten, the last British governor of Hong Kong and a former EU external relations commissioner. This impotence emboldens Russia and revives its centuries-long drive to control neighbouring states.
A new Cold War looms, many are concluding, financed by Russia’s new found energy wealth and fueled by appeasement. Is the free world doomed to decades of hostility due to Europe’s energy vulnerability?

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My Comment: I visited the oil sands in Alberta 8 years ago for a job interview. They needed IT people to work on site. I declined because of family health issues (my father was sick), but when I was there I was impressed by the scale and scope of the project .... and they are just scratching the surface. The oil is stuck in tar and it is everywhere .... a gooey mess of sand,tar, and the sweet smell of oil that has been there forever.

Canada's oil reserves are enormous, the problem to develop them has always been political (I can dedicate a large number of posts just on that topic alone). Additional areas of Canada that are now being developed for oil exploration is Canada's offshore in the Atlantic, and many eyes are now looking up north where preliminary explorations are indicating massive reserves .... hence Russian interest in the resources of the North.