It is not uncommon to hear states and their leaders criticized for "mixing oil
and politics." The U.S.-led Iraq War was criticized as a "war for oil." When
energy exporters overtly use energy as a tool to promote their foreign policy
goals, Europe and the United States regularly decry the use of energy as a
"weapon" rather than accept it as a standard and legitimate tool of diplomacy.In
"Energy Politics," Brenda Shaffer argues that energy and politics are
intrinsically linked. Modern life--from production of goods, to means of travel
and entertainment, to methods of waging war--is heavily dependent on access to
energy. A country's ability to acquire