51,400 US troops leave Middle East bases in headless-chicken withdrawal
The withdrawal of 51,400 soldiers from bases in the Middle East has sparked a debate over the future of the petrodollar and America's economic hegemony.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
51,400 American soldiers leave their bases: the beginning of the end of the petrodollar?
The number is not a metaphor: 51,400 US personnel are leaving their bases in the Middle East. Images of car convoys heading to hotels in Bahrain have spread like wildfire in economic analysis circles, not just military ones. What is at stake is not a tactical relocation, but the very foundation of the global financial order: the petrodollar.
The petrodollar, the greatest economic scam
The mass withdrawal has peine a debate that seemed dormant: how much is the greenback really worth if the Saudis are no longer obliged to sell their crude exclusively in dollars? Beneath the discussion lies the idea that the petrodollar system — the deal struck in the 1970s under which the US offered military protection in exchange for oil being invoiced in its currency — has been described by some analysts as "the greatest economic scam in recent human history". The troop withdrawal is proof that the umbrella is being closed.
The BRICS and the Saudi gamble
While the soldiers pack their bags, Saudi Arabia is looking East — not towards its own borders, but towards the BRICS. Riyadh is already flirting with selling crude in yuan, rubles or rupees. It is not an isolated move: Japan and South Korea, which pay a high price for American protection, are also starting to wonder whether the bill is worth it. The economic foundation of the empire is cracking when the guarantor can no longer (or no longer wants to) maintain its bases.
A withdrawal that is no joke
Some argue this is a strategic relocation to the Indo-Pacific, but even that reading confirms the relative decline of American influence in the region that produces 30% of the world's oil. The figure of 51,400 is not a typo; it is the spearhead of a decoupling which, if it takes hold, would force a rethink of the dollar's value as a reserve currency. The question nobody answers is: what happens when oil stops being traded in dollars?
Related discussions in the forum
The number is not a metaphor: 51,400 US personnel are leaving their bases in the Middle East. Images of car convoys heading to hotels in Bahrain have spread like wildfire in economic analysis circles, not just military ones. What is at stake is not a tactical relocation, but the very foundation of the global financial order: the petrodollar.
The petrodollar, the greatest economic scam
The mass withdrawal has peine a debate that seemed dormant: how much is the greenback really worth if the Saudis are no longer obliged to sell their crude exclusively in dollars? Beneath the discussion lies the idea that the petrodollar system — the deal struck in the 1970s under which the US offered military protection in exchange for oil being invoiced in its currency — has been described by some analysts as "the greatest economic scam in recent human history". The troop withdrawal is proof that the umbrella is being closed.
The BRICS and the Saudi gamble
While the soldiers pack their bags, Saudi Arabia is looking East — not towards its own borders, but towards the BRICS. Riyadh is already flirting with selling crude in yuan, rubles or rupees. It is not an isolated move: Japan and South Korea, which pay a high price for American protection, are also starting to wonder whether the bill is worth it. The economic foundation of the empire is cracking when the guarantor can no longer (or no longer wants to) maintain its bases.
A withdrawal that is no joke
Some argue this is a strategic relocation to the Indo-Pacific, but even that reading confirms the relative decline of American influence in the region that produces 30% of the world's oil. The figure of 51,400 is not a typo; it is the spearhead of a decoupling which, if it takes hold, would force a rethink of the dollar's value as a reserve currency. The question nobody answers is: what happens when oil stops being traded in dollars?
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (18 replies).
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