ABSTRACT
THE Middle East is of outstanding importance to Britain and the Western world to-day for three main reasons: it is still the channel of communications between the British Isles and most of the Commonwealth; it is a vital base area astride a possible Russian route to the West; and it is the world's richest source of petroleum: the last two factors are closely interrelated. Relations between Britain, and, for that matter, the West in general, and this tremendously important area have never been as bad as they are now, and while politicians are seeking rather vainly to negotiate new treaties and smooth out old difficulties, businessmen, and in particular the men who direct the great petroleum companies, must find a way of placing their relationships on a firmer foundation. The age of 'concessions' and all that they implied is clearly coming to an end. Western capital and Western enterprise can no longer exploit for their own good the rich resources of backward Middle Eastern countries. And yet this area, including the Persian Gulf, contains forty-two per cent. of the world's proven petroleum reserves—of the rest, thirty-five per cent. are in the United States, twelve per cent. in Venezuela. The deposits are largely in the least developed countries of the region—Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Persia, and Iraq. Potential reserves are believed to be even greater still, and none, either proven or potential, is yet nearly fully developed. With the example of Persia before them, Western capitalists will hesitate to sink their money in countries where fanaticism, nationalism, or just sheer inefficiency may cause the whole lot to be lost. Yet not only must the West depend upon this rich store of oil, but the oil-possessing countries themselves must be able to reap the benefit of it, otherwise the terribly low standards of living, which give rise to Communism, can never be ameliorated. The answer would probably be patience—but there is little time for patience: the situation, from whichever side one regards it, is desperately urgent.
