Part 4-Middle East and The Caucasus. The Russia-Ukraine war. Exploring energy markets in a destabilizing world.

The Middle East and Caucasus regions have long been hotbeds of economic strife, difficult geographies, political instability, and religious ferver. A story that also interfaces with the greater world through the lens of economics, geography, politics, and religion. This is an area of the world that has spawned great thinkers, beautiful art, and in modern times the energy to accelerate the worlds development. As a critical path of trade routes before the invention of deep water navigation the Middle East sat on the cross roads between India, China, and South East Asia with the European continent. Providing a cultural, knowledge, and economic exchange hub during the age of overland travel. The geography of the region, a mix of mountianous plateus, deserts, fertile river valeys, and coastal lands created opportunities for relatively small civilizations to develop and sustain themselves but made significant expansion difficult. The discovery of oil in the region in 1908 radically changed the trajectory of the region and put us on a path to discuss our topic of today.

For our disscussion, the world as a whole, and the problems in the region energy is at the core. The largest economies in the area are driven almost exclusively by or predominately by energy extraction and sales. Decades of surpluses were utilized to placate firey populations and allow them to grow beyond the sustainable levels of self production.

Because this is a complex region of the world, let’s establish which nations we are considering to develop our overview today. These countries include Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia. While we won’t cover every country today, this is represenitive of the region we are discussing.

Today's glimpse scratches the surface of a complex issue explored in-depth on my Substack. The interactive format lets you explore the dynamic global energy landscape through the lens of a volatile yet captivating region.

Want to go beyond this preview and truly engage with the data and insights? Click the link below and join me on Substack!

Check out the full part-4 of my series HERE.

Here's why:

• Interactive features: Explore data visualizations, maps, and more!
• Deeper insights: Dive into the complexities of the region's energy landscape.
• Direct engagement: Ask questions, discuss, and connect with fellow readers.

Don't miss out on this rich learning experience. See you on Substack!