Foreign Oil Firms In Iraq Targeted In Basra Rocket Attack

CNBC: Rocket hits site of foreign oil firms in Iraq’s Basra

* A rocket landed at the headquarters for several global major oil companies, including U.S. giant ExxonMobil, near Iraq’s southern city of Basra early on Wednesday, wounding two Iraqi workers, police said.
* Police said the rocket was a short-range Katyusha missile that landed 100 metres from the section of the site used as a residence and operations centre by Exxon.

A rocket landed at the headquarters for several global major oil companies, including U.S. giant ExxonMobil, near Iraq’s southern city of Basra early on Wednesday, wounding two Iraqi workers, police said.

The rocket hit the Burjesia residential and operations headquarters west of the city, they said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

A security source said Exxon was preparing to evacuate some 20 foreign staff immediately.

Other companies operating at the site include Royal Dutch Shell and Italian Eni SpA, oil officials said.

Police said the rocket was a short-range Katyusha missile that landed 100 metres from the section of the site used as a residence and operations centre by Exxon.

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WNU Editor: Everyone is pointing fingers at Iranian backed militias behind these attacks .... Who is targeting U.S. forces and foreign oil companies in Iraq? (Seth J. Frantzman, Jerusalem Post). The problem is that the only ones who are going to get hurt are the Iraqis themselves. This is not how you win friends and allies, but I guess some in Iran have the view that since they cannot sell oil, no one else will.

More News On Foreign Oil Firms In Iraq Being Targeted In Rocket Attacks

The Latest: 40 evacuated after attack on Iraq Exxon site -- AP
Iraq rocket attack: oil firms begin evacuating staff from Basra site -- The Guardian
Staff evacuated as rocket strikes near foreign oil firms in Iraq -- Reuters
Rocket hits Basra oil headquarter site of Exxon, Royal Dutch Shell -- RT

Is Iraq About To Leave OPEC?

CNBC: Iraq could be the next to break ranks with OPEC, analyst says

* A top energy analyst believes that Iraq could be the next country to quit OPEC.
* On Monday, Qatar announced it was quitting the cartel.
* Iraq reportedly pumped a record 4.76 million barrels per day (bpd) in October.

Compliance across OPEC is in question amid conflicting interests regarding oil production cuts and an abrupt withdrawal announcement from Qatar.

While the tiny Gulf kingdom’s departure is largely symbolic and unlikely to lead to further exits, a top energy analyst believes that if any country were to break ranks next, it would be Iraq.

“I think in terms of all the OPEC countries, to me the one that stands out over the last six to eight months is Iraq,” Michael Cohen, head of energy markets research at Barclays bank, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Tuesday.

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Update: Could Iraq Be The Next OPEC Member To Exit? (OilPrice.com)

WNU Editor: OPEC is meeting today to discuss oil production cuts, but there are deep divisions .... Oil prices sink as Saudi official signals no pact yet at key OPEC gathering (MarketWatch). As for Iraq leaving OPEC .... they, Saudi Arabia, Russia, and US shale operators are the reasons why OPEC is facing an oil glut. And while everyone is talking production cuts, Iraq is talking the opposite .... OPEC must achieve crude price stability - Iraq minister (Reuters). I can see the possibility in future that if these oil production trends continue to increase, Iraq will be told to cut back, and I have doubts that they will comply.

Iraq's Oil Business Is Booming

A worker walks at Khor al-Amaya oil terminal off the coast of Basra April 30, 2009. REUTERS/MAY NAJI

Bloomberg: Iraq Oil Shipments Near Record as Protests Intensify in Baghdad

 * Shipments rose to 3.36 million barrels a day in April
 * Oil output, exports not affected by parliament protests: SOMO

Iraq’s oil exports approached a record high in April, adding barrels to a worldwide supply glut, even as protests against public corruption threatened to paralyze the OPEC member nation’s government.

Shipments rose to 3.36 million barrels a day, or 100.92 million barrels for the month, Asim Jihad, a spokesman at the oil ministry, said by text message Sunday. The figures don’t include Kurdistan Regional Government exports. The exports rose from 3.29 million barrels a day in March and were close to the November all-time high of 3.365 million barrels a day, according to oil ministry figures.

Oil shipments and production were not affected Sunday after protesters stormed parliament in Baghdad, Falah Al-Amri, chairman of Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization, said by Facebook message. Government forces are struggling in the fight against Islamic State militants as a plunge in oil prices of more than 50 percent in the last two years has battered its finances.

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Update #1: Iraq Says Oil Exports, Revenues Increase in April (AP)
Update #2: Iraq's southern oil exports rise in April to 3.364 mln bpd (Reuters)

WNU Editor: Talk about a disconnect. On the one hand the oil business is booming, on the other hand the government is broke and most government services have collapsed.

Oil Is Splitting Iraq Apart

Image from AC Democracy

Loveday Morris, Washington Post: A new fight over oil shows why it’s so hard to keep Iraq from splintering

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Kurdish region has begun to sell oil independently of the central government, a move that is exacerbating divisions in the country as it struggles to turn back Islamic State militants.

The Kurdish region last month stopped transferring oil to the state as it had promised to do under a landmark deal in 2014. Kurdish officials argued that payments from Baghdad had not been sufficient. Instead, the region exported more than 600,000 barrels a day itself, Kurdish and Iraqi officials said, a step that Baghdad considers illegal.

The dispute threatens to widen differences in a country already effectively split into three parts: the Kurdish north, areas in southern and central Iraq controlled by the Shiite-led government, and territory in the north and west seized by the Islamic State.

WNU Editor: Its hard to believe who is telling the truth here .... but with both the Kurds and the Baghdad government now struggling to survive, I would not be surprised if it is now "every man for himself".

What Happens To Iraqi Oil Supplies If The Islamic State Continues To Win Territory

If ISIS Takes Anbar, Iraq Will Be Cut Off From OPEC -- Hot Air

In preparation for what appears to be the Islamic State’s imminent assault on portions of Baghdad, ISIS is going about securing the neighboring key Sunni-dominated province of Anbar.

On Sunday, ISIS claimed responsibility for a series of coordinated suicide bombings and roadside attacks in that Iraqi province. One of those attacks killed Brig. Gen. Ahmed Al-Dulaimi, the chief of police in Ramadi, Anbar’s provincial capital. Officials estimate that ISIS now controls approximately 80 percent of that restive province, and will soon mount an assault on the regional capital.

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My Comment: The southern Iraqi oil fields will probably continue to operate .... but for the rest of Iraq .... a lost cause. The long term damage to Iraq's oil industry .... and global oil supplies .... cannot be underestimated. On the plus side .... global oil supplies are still robust (for now) .... Exclusive: Privately, Saudis tell oil market- get used to lower prices (Reuters)

$300 Million In Kurdish Crude But No Buyers

A still image from video taken by a U.S. Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft shows the oil tanker United Kalavyrta (also known as the United Kalavrvta), which is carrying a cargo of Kurdish crude oil, approaching Galveston, Texas July 25, 2014. Credit: Reuters/US Coast Guard/handout via Reuters

For Wandering Tankers With $300 Million Of Kurdish Crude, End-Game Still In Doubt -- Reuters

(Reuters) - After a legal show-down in Texas this week, the outlook for a handful of tankers holding some $300 million worth of Kurdish oil is not looking good.

Seemingly unable to find enough buyers willing to take a risk on million-barrel cargoes of disputed crude, the Kurdish authorities are paying over $75,000 a day to keep all three far-flung vessels afloat. A fourth ship began filling up at a terminal on the Turkish coast on Thursday, potentially adding to the tally, Reuters reported.

Unless they can seal last-minute discreet sales or reach some kind of deal with Baghdad over how to share oil revenues, experts say, chances are slim of unloading ships now dotted around the globe, from Texas to Malaysia. In total, they have already been at sea for nearly half a year.

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My Comment: No reputable buyer is one is going to purchase this crude .... the legal headaches are not worth the aggravation .... even if the oil could be bought at a good price.

The Fight Over Who Owns Iraqi Oil Intensifies Between Baghdad And The Kurdish North

A still image from video taken by a U.S. Coast Guard HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft shows the oil tanker United Kalavyrta (also known as the United Kalavrvta), which is carrying a cargo of Kurdish crude oil, approaching Galveston, Texas, July 25, 2014.

Iraq And Its Kurds Fight Over Oil Tanker Off The Texas Coast -- L.A. Times

A $100-million bonanza of crude oil sits in a tanker off the coast of Galveston, Texas, but moving it to shore has become a knotty foreign policy problem.

Late Monday, a federal court ordered U.S. marshals to seize the cargo of the tanker, the United Kalavrvta, if its more than 1 million gallons of crude oil is brought ashore. The oil is claimed by both Baghdad and the Kurdistan regional government, nominally part of Iraq but locked in an uneasy embrace, especially when it comes to who benefits from oil revenues.

Iraq is divided among Shiite and Sunni Muslims and the Kurds, who have all been fighting over the shape of the new government amid a bloody civil war prompted by the success of the Islamic State. The Kurds have been assertive, particularly about oil revenues, even as the central government has focused on the fighting between Shiites and Sunnis.

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More News On The Dispute Between Baghdad And The Kurds Over Who Owns Iraqi Oil

U.S. judge says cannot seize Kurdish crude for now -- Reuters
Judge says US can't seize tanker full of Kurdish oil off Texas coast -- FOX News
US Judge: Kurdish Oil Tanker Outside US Jurisdiction -- VOA
Iraq warns against unloading tanker of Kurdish crude anchored off Galveston -- Fuel Fix
Iraq challenges shipment of Kurdish oil to Texas -- CBS
Kurds Rebut Iraq’s Claim to Crude Oil Cargo Off Texas Coastline -- Bloomberg
Kurdistan Challenges Iraq's Oil Claim -- WSJ
Iraq's Kurds have right to sell oil while squeezed by Baghdad: MP -- Reuters
Iraq’s black market oil fuels sectarian division -- Al Jazeera

The Future Of Oil Prices Is Directly Tied To The Future Of Iraq

BBC

Future Of Oil Hangs On Iraqi Politics -- Meghan L. O'Sullivan, Bloomberg

Fears that events in Iraq will send global oil prices soaring have abated. Yet, the crisis has potentially huge implications for oil. Under any conceivable outcome to the current situation, oil production from Iraq will fail to meet recent expectations. The reason for this dire prognosis is that politics – not security or logistics – will be the biggest determinant of Iraq’s oil trajectory in the years ahead.

In 2012, the International Energy Agency forecast that Iraq would account for 45 percent of the growth in global oil supply from 2012 to 2035. In its projection, the IEA anticipated that Iraq would move to producing more than 6 million barrels a day in the next five and a half years, from 3.3 million barrels a day. Production at such levels would make Iraq the fourth-largest producer, after Russia, Saudi Arabia and the U.S. – assuming all increased their production along projected lines.

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My Comment: When it comes to Iraqi oil .... all bets are now off. To say that this is a disappointment is an understatement .... so much wealth .... but it is in a country that is "screwed up" because of politics, sectarianism, religion, and fanaticism.

What Will Be The Impact On Oil Markets As The Iraq Crisis Continues

Exxon Carries Out Major Evacuation From Iraq: Oil Official -- CNBC/Reuters

The head of Iraq's state-run South Oil Company Dhiya Jaffar said on Wednesday that ExxonMobil has carried out a "major evacuation'' of their staff and BP had evacuated 20 percent of its staff.

He said ENI, Schlumberger, Weatherford, and Baker Hughes had no plans to evacuate staff from Iraq following the lightning advance of Sunni militants through the country. The companies, which are based in southern Iraq where the government is still in firm control, were not immediately available for comment.

"This message is not satisfactory for us. We are not convinced the work should not be done remotely. They should be here on the ground,'' Jaffar told Reuters.

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More News On The Impact On Oil Markets As Iraq's Civil War Escalates

Iraq Crude Exports Surge in South While Violence Hits North -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Wall Street warily watching Iraq, oil prices -- Reuters
China's oil operations in Iraq unaffected, cuts some staff -- Reuters
Iraq Crisis Threatens Chinese Oil Investments -- Bloomberg
$120 Oil Flagged as Danger Point for Global Economy on Iraq Crisis -- Bloomberg
Understand Iraq’s Impact On Global Oil In Four Easy Charts -- IBTimes
Here's The Iraq Scenario Where Oil Spikes By Another $50 -- Business Insider
What does Iraq's crisis mean for oil? -- BBC
The Iraq Nightmare Scenario That Could Send Oil Prices Surging -- Joe Weisenthal, Business Insider
If Iraqi oil goes off line, $200 oil is next -- Market Watch

With ISIS Rebels Approaching Iraq Orders It's Biggest Oil Refinery To Shut Down And All Foreign Staff To Leave

A general view of Baiji oil refinery in Baiji, 180 km (112 miles) north of Baghdad, January 21, 2009. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani

Iraq’s Biggest Oil Refinery Forced To Shut Down -- Irish Times

Foreign staff evacuated as militants advance into oil refinery town and surround it

Iraq’s biggest oil refinery, Baiji, has been shut down and its foreign staff evacuated, refinery officials said today, adding that local staff remain in place and the military is still in control of the facility.

Militants from al Qaeda splinter group the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis), also known as the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, who seized Iraq’s second-biggest city of Mosul last week have advanced into the oil refinery town of Baiji and surrounded the refinery.

The refinery shut down overnight, the sources said.

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Update #1: Iraq's biggest oil refinery shut down, foreign staff evacuated -- Reuters
Update #2: Iraq Shuts Biggest Oil Refinery and Evacuates Foreign Staff as Isis Closes In -- Business Insider

My Comment: This is another disaster for the Iraqi government. And in the event that ISIS rebels do damage and/or destroy this facility .... Iraq's hope for becoming a major oil power will be set back for years.

Iraq's Civil War Will Threaten Global Energy Supplies For Years

Iraq’s Civil War Threatens Structure Of Global Energy Supply For Years -- Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, The Telegraph

Brent crude jumped above $113 a barrel as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant raced towards Baghdad

Spectacular advances by Jihadi forces across northern Iraq have raised the spectre of a Sunni-Shia conflagration in the heart of the Middle East, triggering a surge in oil prices and throwing into doubt the structure of global energy supply for the next decade.

Brent crude jumped above $113 a barrel as the self-described Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) raced down the Tigris Valley towards Baghdad with sophisticated weaponry, seizing on its momentum after the historic capture of Mosul. Oil prices are approaching levels last seen during the Arab Spring.

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My Comment: In short .... if the Iraq civil war continues to escalate .... expect the surge in prices for oil and gas to last for years.

As Iraq Teeters On The Edge Of Civil War, What Will Be The Impact Of An Iraq Oil Shock On The Global Economy

Iraq Oil Shock Would Kill World Economic Recovery, Experts Warn -- Andrew Critchlow, The Telegraph

As violence threatens Iraq's oil industry, experts fear crude at $130 per barrel would damage the global economy

Open warfare between the government and rebels in Iraq would pose a threat to the global economic recovery should oil production from the war-torn Middle East state suffer a serious disruption, analysts have warned.

Brent oil prices climbed as high as $110.25 (£65.59) on Wednesday amid concerns that 3.5m barrels per day of Iraqi exports could be knocked out of the market by the violence that has seen al-Qaeda forces seize control of Mosul, Tikrit and Samarra.

"The worst case scenario is that we see production from Iraq slip down to levels in the last Gulf war, then oil could spike $20 a barrel very quickly," Ole Hansen, vice-president and head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank told The Telegraph. "In that scenario, the entire economic recovery, which is still fragile, could stall and we could even slip back into recession in some regions."

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More News On The Impact Of An Iraq Oil Shock On The Global Economy

Dicker: Mosul Falls to Insurgents in Iraq -- Now What Happens to Oil? -- The Street
Iraq crisis: What the Mosul siege means for OPEC -- Nick Cunningham, CSM
Iraq violence disrupts OPEC agenda -- John Defterios, CNN

My Comment: Chaos in Iraq. Libya on the brink of civil war. Nigeria at war against Boko Haram. Unrest in Venezuela growing. All of these countries are major oil producing nations .... and all of them facing major unrest. It's not hard to figure out where the price of oil is going to go .... and how it will impact the global economy.In short .... higher prices, and a global recession.

Iraq's Oil Exports Could 'Rock" World Markets

Iraq’s Flood Of ‘Cheap Oil’ Could Rock World Markets -- Washington Times

Nation hopes to exceed Saudi Arabia

The U.S. is not the only nation experiencing a renaissance in oil production.

Sidelined for two decades by war, sanctions and political instability, Iraq passed a critical milestone last year by producing 3 million barrels a day of crude oil for the first time since 1990, before the Persian Gulf War, reaching 3.4 million barrels a day by December. Given its access to vast reserves at low costs, Baghdad is poised to play a pivotal role in determining whether the world’s growing thirst for oil drives up fuel prices to debilitating levels in coming years.

“Iraq has a potential as a game-changer” in the volatile global oil market, said Maria van der Hoeven, executive director of the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA). Already, she noted, Iraq has moved up to be the world’s third-largest oil exporter and is now on a path to be much more, becoming a “strategic source of world oil supply” in the years ahead. Iraq even has hopes of supplanting Saudi Arabia as the globe’s biggest oil producer.

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Update: Iraq oil exports rise to 2.359 million barrels per day in January -- Business Recorder

My Comment: It is amazing that even with all the violence, Iraq's oil exports continue to grow. I guess everyone needs to make money.

The Politics Of Iraq's Oil Fields

Iraq’s oil minister said Exxon Mobil, the first major oil company to sign an agreement with the KRG, had been given an ultimatum to choose between its oilfields in the south or Kurdish blocks in the north. (Reuters)

Exxon Mobil, BP Face Off In Iraq-Kurd Oil Conflict -- Christian Science Monitor

BP and Exxon Mobil have taken opposite sides in the escalating conflict over oil between the Iraqi central government and the Iraqi Kurds, Alic writes.

BP Plc (NYSE: BP) and Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) are caught on opposite sides of the front line of the oil war between the Iraqi central government and the Iraqi Kurds, with Baghdad talks with BP over a deal in disputed Kirkuk and warns Exxon about working with the Kurds.

On 28 January, the Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul Kareem al-Luaibi again threatened to cancel Exxon’s contract in the massive West Qurna-1 oil field in southern Iraq if it refuses to stop dealing separately with the Kurds in Northern Iraq.

“We can’t allow Exxon to step over the constitution. It can’t continue to work in both places at the same time; they have to choose to work either in Iraq or in Kurdistan. We are waiting for a final answer in the coming few days,” the minister said in a statement.

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More News On Iraq's Oil Industry

With or without Exxon, Iraq Kurds strive for energy autonomy -- Reuters
Iraqi Kurds woo more oil majors in contest with Baghdad -- Reuters
Kurds to Truck Crude to Turkey Again in a Week, Minister Says -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Iraqi Kurds 'illegally' exporting oil: Shahristani -- AFP
New disagreement flares up between Iraqi government, Kurdistan Region -- Press TV
Baghdad’s threats fail to curb demand for Kurdish oil -- Al Arabiya
Exxon Mobil weighs politically charged decision on Iraq oilfields -- Dallas Business Journal
Exxon's Iraq Strategy: Is a Bird in the Hand Worth More than Two in the Bush? -- Jared Anderson, Aol Energy

Why Iraq Is Important For Global Oil Output

Iraq Could Become World's Second Biggest Oil Exporter -- The Guardian

IEA report says Iraq could soon be responsible for nearly half of all anticipated growth in global oil output.

Iraq could become the world's second-largest oil exporter within two decades and double its output by 2020, a major study has found.

The International Energy Agency said Iraq can overtake Russia for exports and be responsible for nearly half of all anticipated growth in global output.

But the country's government must overcome internal disputes over oil rights with the autonomous Kurdish region in the north and increase current investment from $9bn (£5.6bn) in 2011 to $25bn a year on average for the rest of the decade, the authors warned.

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My Comment:I guess this explains why Iraq made this purchase today. Iraq has the reserves and  willing partners to participate in developing it oilfields .... but .... as the Guardian points out it also has a history of political instability and violence ... a history that is continuing even today.

Iraq On The Verge To Be The Next Oil Super Power (Maybe)

Crude Awakening -- Foreign Policy

In Iraq's turbulent politics, whoever controls the oil production wields the power. And that might soon be ExxonMobil.

On Dec. 17, two days after the U.S. military cased its colors and formally ended its mission in Iraq, the brain trust of the Iraqi oil sector gathered for a symposium at Baghdad's Alwiyah Club, a fortified concrete complex of meeting rooms and outdoor gardens. They were officially meeting to discuss "Challenges Facing the Development of the Extractive Industry." The issues they grappled with held the prospect to transform the global energy marketplace and determine the course of Iraqi democracy.

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My Comment: A lot of 'big ifs' stand in the way of Iraq achieving it's oil production potential .... but the money is there, and in the end that is what everyone wants in Iraq (maybe).

Iraq May Have More Oil Than Saudi Arabia

The 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment on the oil fields of Iraq. November 2007

Iraq To Resume Oil Exploration After 20 Year Pause -- Reuters

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq will resume searching for oil on Friday for the first time in two decades, the oil ministry said on Thursday, in the hope of finding vast reserves that lay undiscovered because of sanctions and war.

Iraq has 115 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, the third largest in the world, but the government believes the country's actual oil reserves may be three times as high.

Asim Jihad, spokesman for Oil Ministry, said it had trained three teams of geophysicists, geologists and engineers and would kick off exploration in the Gharraf field in Nassiriya in southern Iraq on Friday.

......

Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told Reuters in April he had seen estimates from "reputable companies" that put Iraq's oil reserves at some 350 billion barrels, a massive figure which would put the country ahead of Saudi Arabia.

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My Comment: If Iraq is responsible in its development .... both politically and economically .... they have the potential to be America's most important ally after Israel in the Middle East.

For everyone's info: 350 billion barrels of oil (at today's price of $120 US) = $42 Trillion Dollars

Iraq's Oil Surge -- Implications For Peace

American Soldier Guarding an Oil Fire in Iraq

From The Wall Street Journal:

Here's a thought experiment: Assume that Iraq's democratic government declared it was nationalizing its oil industry, a la Venezuela or Saudi Arabia, while excluding American companies from the country. How do you think U.S. politicians would react? With angry cries of "ingratitude" and "this is what Americans died for"?

Of course they would, led no doubt by that critic for all reasons, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York. So it is passing strange that Mr. Schumer and other Senators are now assailing Iraq precisely because it is opening up to foreign oil companies, especially to U.S. majors like Exxon Mobil and Chevron. For some American pols, everything that happens in Iraq is bad news, especially when it's good news for the U.S.

Iraq announced this week that it is inviting global competition to develop its major oil reserves, with 35 oil companies invited to bid. By tapping outside capital and expertise, Iraq hopes to increase production by 60%, providing a much-needed boost to its own coffers and the world's tight oil supply.

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More News On Iraq's Oil:
Iraq's Oil at a Crossroads -- Dar Al Hayat
Why Baghdad isn't pumping more of its oil -- Toronto Star
Opinion: Let Iraq's Oil Flow -- Wall Street Journal
Iraqi oil … on both sides of the pond -- Iraq Oil Report
Iraq Foreign Oil Investors: Tread Lightly -- CBS News

My Comment: I personally have always been in favor of setting up an oil trust for the Iraqi people as envisioned by Instapundit. With Iraq possessing the second largest proven reserves of oil, its participation in pumping oil into the world's market will have a tremendous positive effect. Oil prices are having a terrible stranglehold on the world's poor and developing countries, any additional oil can only help in bringing high prices down.

Critics of this evolving situation are primarily reacting to events that are now out of their control and directly opposite from their positions of what should be U.S. and Iraqi policies. Fortunately, the people of Iraq and their leaders have very little interest in abiding the wishes of the U.S. Congress and their agenda.

I expect within a year a major oil boom that will not only employ hundreds of thousands of unemployed Iraqis, but also bring billions to the coffers of the Iraqi Government. This will profoundly impact world oil prices (lower prices), and will directly undercut the power and influence of countries like Iran, Venezuela, and Russia.

For the Iraqis themselves, they will start to believe that their resources will be (for the first time) benefiting them and not some despotic dictator or what outside politicians (the U.S. Congress) believe should be done. The dividends for peace will be immeasurable, and if successful, one can then argue that the invasion and the cost of human life was worth it.