
Adam Hanieh, "Crude Capitalism: Oil, Corporate Power, and the Making of the World Market" (Verso, 2024)
New Books in Critical Theory
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Oil's Power: The Soviet Union's Economic Struggles
This chapter explores the pivotal role of oil in the Soviet Union's economy and politics, detailing its reliance on oil sales for hard currency and the consequences of declining revenues. It emphasizes how oil dependency contributed to the region's instability, military challenges, and the eventual collapse of the Soviet Union. The chapter also discusses the global oil market dynamics, focusing on shifts towards nationalized companies and the challenges posed to the dollar as the reserve currency.
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