Petroleum and Politics in Iraq: The Struggle for the State investigates how oil wealth, elite power struggles and foreign intervention have shaped the fragile nature of the modern Iraqi state.
Focusing on the period from Iraqs foundation through to the aftermath of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, this book analyses how rentierism, tactical political decision-making and coercion have interacted to erode, rather than reinforce, state cohesion. Drawing on rentier state theory, Joel Migdals politics of survival, and Antonio Giustozzis work on coercive institutions, it traces how successive Iraqi regimes despite access to massive oil rents and international aid failed to build lasting legitimacy or effective governance. Instead, the reliance on coercion became increasingly pronounced, leaving the state vulnerable to internal collapse and foreign influence. Through a careful examination of both pre- and post-2003 Iraq, the book argues that elite strategies and international actions have consistently undermined opportunities for meaningful state consolidation and raises critical questions about the future trajectory of Iraqs territorial and political integrity.
Essential reading for scholars of Middle East politics, international relations and political economy, this book also offers valuable insights for policymakers, analysts and practitioners involved in post-conflict reconstruction, state-building and governance in resource-dependent and conflict-prone contexts.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FOREWORD
CHAPTER ONE THE IMPORTANCE OF IRAQ
1.1 A Complex Mix Hydrocarbons, Conflict and the State
1.2 The Importance of Iraq
1.3 In Focus
1.4 Research Approach and Structure
CHAPTER TWO THEORY: ECONOMICS, POLITICS AND COERCION
2.1 Setting the Stage
2.2 Rentier State Theory
2.3 Moving Beyond Early RST
2.4 Implications of Rentier State Theory A Closer Look
2.5 Rentier Links to Authoritarianism
2.6 Migdal and the Politics of Survival
2.7 Viewing Survival Politics through Different Prisms
2.8 Paradox, Dilemma, and Options for Leadership
2.9 The Politics of Survival Implications
2.10 The Role of Coercion
2.11 Giustozzis Seven Hypotheses
2.12 Phases of a States Life
2.13 Remember the Monopoly
2.14 Impacts of International Intervention
2.15 Theory to Praxis
CHAPTER THREE IRAQS ECONOMY OVER TIME: FROM ROYALTY TO RENTS
3.1 Monarchy, Mandate, and Independence
3.2 The Revolutionary Period
3.3 The Baath through Saddam Boom, Bust and War
3.4 Iraq Under Sanctions
3.5 Iraq after 2003
3.6 Oil and the New Iraq
3.7 An Analysis
CHAPTER FOUR THE POLITICS OF SURVIVAL
4.1 The British War, Mandate, Monarchy to the Eve of Revolution
(19141958)
4.2 The Revolutionary Period (19581968)
4.3 The Return of the Baath (19681978)
4.4 Iraq Under Saddam
4.5 The US Invasion, Withdrawal and Aftermath
4.6 Iraq and the Politics of Survival an Assessment
CHAPTER FIVE COERCION AND THE IRAQI STATE
5.1 Monarchy, Mandate, Independence and the Monopoly
5.2 Revolutionary Iraq
5.3 The Rise of the Baath through Saddam
5.4 America, Collapse and the Struggle Renewed
5.5 Assessment Iraq and Coercion
CHAPTER SIX CONCLUSION: THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
6.1 Framework and Findings
6.2 Insights and Implications
6.3 The Primacy of the Political
6.4 On International Intervention
6.5 Looking Behind, Looking Ahead
EPILOGUE
APPENDICES
Appendix 1 United Nations Security Information Report 08 December 2005
BIBLIOGRAPHY
INDEX
John D. Moore has spent over three decades working in international security and development, serving with government, multilateral agencies, the energy industry and non-governmental organisations across parts of the Middle East, South Asia, East Africa and the Pacific Islands. Drawing upon his wealth of experience, Mr. Moore brings a unique perspective on the nexus between security and development. He holds a PhD from the Australian National University, a Master's Degree in Political Economy and International Security Studies from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs from the Virginia Military Institute.
