ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes Japanese-United States relationships in the context of their interactions with the petroleum-exporting nations (PENs). PENs' behavior toward the United States is systematically compared with that toward Japan, while an attempt is made to build linkages between PENs' external behavior and internal development. Oil issues emerge from both external and internal conditions of the petroleum industry. A brief survey of PENs' oil related interactions suggests a highly dynamic process which undergoes substantial change over time. Like most political entities, PENs have been undergoing dynamic changes in a multitude of socio-politico-economic dimensions. Unlike most polities, however, this change has been occurring at a phenomenally rapid rate. Truly staggering is the magnitude of financial surpluses that will accrue to PENs and the worldwide economic dislocation that it will cause. Especially hard hit are the so-called Fourth World countries, which are nonindustrialized and lack potential energy sources.
