...and perhaps more than all of the other Middle Eastern countries combined. Bush is not about to let the Iraqi's have free reign over that pool of wealth and power! Let the truth come out. Here is an article that was published before the actual Bush II invasion of Iraq in March 2003:
<snip>
Future of Iraq's Oil Reserves,
World's Supply Depends On Type of War Waged
By Kevin Ward
Canadian Press
December 16, 2002
Iraq sits on one of the world's largest reserves of oil, crude that is not only plentiful but also cheap to pump out of the ground.
For some, often described as the conspiratorial minded, oil is the real motivation behind the United States' push to change Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's regime, not a desire to rid the world of a serious threat from biological and chemical weapons.
But even those who don't buy the argument that oil is at the centre of U.S. President George W. Bush's interest in Iraq agree that the outcome of a war would have short- and long-term implications for the world's oil supply.
<link>
http://www.globalpolicy.org/security/oil/2002/1216future.htm<other links>
http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aairaqioil.htmhttp://www.ratical.org/ratville/CAH/RRiraqWar.html<snip from above link>
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Iraq war was designed to 1) secure U.S./U.K. oil supplies before and after global Peak Oil, and 2) to have a large military presence to "dissuade" other oil-producers from moving towards the euro as an oil transaction currency. These are the two crucial elements for maintaining U.S. hegemony over the world economy. Reconverting Iraq back to the petrodollar was not the critical issue, but preventing any further momentum towards a petroeuro is a critical component of current US Geostrategy. While deceiving the American people into war, this administration sent a message to other OPEC-producers -- "You are either with us or against us."
However, in the end I predict the rules of economics and the laws of physics will prevail over the dreams of Global Empire. It will be increasingly "sensible" for OPEC to re-denominate oil sales in euros once the EU expands in 2004. <76> Additionally, Peak Oil will usher in an era in which demand for oil will forever outstrip supply. The neoconservatives understand what this means -- the end of US Hyper power, and thus the end of their dreams of a US Global Empire. The true test of US leadership and the citizenry will be acknowledging that our nation will soon endure some economic hardship. Everyone on earth will be impacted by Peak Oil, and given that reality -- multilaterialism rather than unilateralism is the only way to create a peaceful outcome.