Photo: Dissolve.com
After last weekend's announcement of the assassination of the Iranian General Qassem Soleimani by the United States of America, the Middle East is now in a state of uncertainty. A state of risk for any U.S. citizen. Whether military or civilian. Which is very concerning given our longstanding oil interests. How many civilians are working in Iraq? The answer is ambiguous, according to reports by various news outlets.
Although, the oil companies were willing to give some information about withdrawing civilians given the current state of uncertainty. According to reporting by Politico Energy, the number of employees is not huge:
U.S. OIL WORKERS EXIT IRAQ: Rising tensions in Iraq following the U.S. killing of Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani has prompted Chevron Corp. to withdraw American staff from Iraq, Pro's Ben Lefebvre reports . The oil major's expat employees and contract workers have left the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq "as a precautionary measure," a company spokesperson said Monday. The spokesperson declined to say how many employees had departed, only adding that it "didn't involve lots of people."The new departures come after Reuters reported last week that U.S. citizens working for foreign oil companies were leaving Iraq because of security fears. "We have local staff who are overseeing our ongoing operations in the [Kurdistan region of Iraq] and our related expatriate workforce will continue to work remotely from overseas," the Chevron spokesperson said. Chevron plans to start producing 20,000 barrels a day in the region by the middle of this year, Ben reports. Spokespeople for Exxon Mobil and BP, which also have operations in Iraq, declined to discuss staffing or security matters at their operations.
One significant realization that I learned while serving in the Middle East (along with the rest of the world) is that the U.S. government has workers (military and civilian) in all areas of the world. And the number is not small. Now, move that conversation to the number of oil workers in the Middle East.
In the excerpt above, the company spokesperson stated that Chevron did have plans to produce around 200,000 barrels of oil a day. How many workers are required to pull/produce 200,000 barrels of oil a day?
Anyone who has seen an oil refinery knows that there is massive infrastructure. Undoubtedly, the number of employees required to produce 200,000 barrels of oil a day is significant rather than small. Furthermore, the news above is regarding downplaying the number of employees that are actually in the Middle East. Their safety is at risk because of the actions of the President of the United States.
The actions were surprising, to say the least. Although, former security state officials say that the Iranian General has been a target for a decade. There is a reason why that target has never been taken out. I imagine the answer involves the safety of the oil workers in the Middle East.
Not to mention, the large numbers of U.S. military soldiers who are now at an elevated (dangerous) risk while carrying their mission out. The danger is unneeded and is a ploy by the President to deflect attention from the impeachment hearings of the President of the United States. Furthermore, the evidence for proceeding to distinguish the threat is razor-thin. Which is extremely concerning.
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