The Economics of War and Development

The 1st world war showcased the magnitude oil and crude can play in global power and politics. After the war helped the discovery of the significance of oil and crude, there was a huge play of power, manipulation and tussle as to who controls oil producing wells in the Middle East. National governments such as Iran, Iraq that wanted to use the oil power to topple western control were out-gamed by the seven sisters- that is the giant oil companies. 

The Gulf war, Iraq-Iranian war, Israeli-Egypt war further destabilized the region, OPEC creation and manipulation of oil prices led to spike in oil prices resulting in huge wealth and resources to the giant oil companies. This meant that global control was kept back within western companies, hence Middle East politics influenced and manipulated by such.

In the 2001 US-Iraq war, control of oil wells was priority under the guise of terrorism. Make no mistake war on terror was a genuine objective but without oil wells in contention, the approach would have been different.

Between 2010 and 2012-onward Arab spring, we have seen attention paid to States where economic interest overshadows while States with less economic or geographical significance in global power play becomes a UN academic exercise on debates and veto power.

Now North Korea and South Korea have risen with threat of nuclear war, of course there needs to be a serious global security threat equal to terrorism that allow western involvement. Reviewing that wars and destabilization always have an economically based manipulation, one must interrogate what economic benefit accrues to the destabilization of the Asia pacific region. Would such undermine China's growing economic power or would it improve China's global power grip and economics? A power seen as serious threat to other economies.

My question remains, how does MDGs achieve its developmental goals and objectives when economic equality of States poses threats to world super powers. Hence we can only deduce that poverty, under-development of some States must always be maintained, therefore certain level of conflicts, regional destabilization as long as the balance of global integrity is not tipped may be pursued by some States.

The economics of war must always be reflected on, while war is a great negative, human history records far too many wars than times of peace and no war is yet to take place that was not a question of economics. Money is power. War for some remains a source of income.

War undermines the opportunities for development.