Gas is a source of wealth, and a tool of influence and dominance, and the backbone of movable warfare from one country to another, and the developed and industrialized countries are seeking with all its efforts to reduce emissions causing global warming, to keep the planet from pollution of rivers or the sea or soil and since the oil reserves are limited between the next 50-70 years, we must look for alternatives such as clean energy.
Gas conflict: Conflict and intrigue over valuable energy supplies have been features of the international landscape for a long time, Major wars over oil have been fought every decade or since World War 1, and smaller engagements have erupted every few years.
The discovery and exploration and the development of tools and technology in the Middle East region have proven that it contains an enormous energy of gas worth hundreds of billions of dollars, similar to the Arabian Gulf region at the beginning of the seventies , but the overlapping fields between Israel, Lebanon, Greece, Cyprus, have created a struggle for this treasure, may lead to the outbreak of war, especially Israel and Cyprus already have begun to exert their influence and exploit some of the fields. We are entering an era of intensified conflict over energy.
The gas fields in the Middle East are a rich source of energy as international reports indicated, issued by the “American Foundation Geological Survey” that the reserve in the Middle East region amounted with 122 trillion cubic meters, and 1.7 billion barrels of oil.
Accompanying this, the race of countries and international alliances; where an alliance of Cyprus, Greece and Israel, while the Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt are the biggest losers.
Initially to be to refer to the exclusive economic zone, defined by international law of the sea in 1982, the legitimacy of the state, in the extension of about 200 nautical miles within the areas of national jurisdiction, as the State is entitled to exercise any economic activity, discovery, exploration, and exploitation of any wealth within the economic exclusive zone to it noting that in 2003, Egypt signed with Cyprus agreement to share the exclusive economic zone between them, and in 2011 Cyprus announced the discovery of Aphrodite field, with an estimated reserve has 27 trillion cubic feet of gas, and represents the highest reserves in the world, worth $ 120 billion.
Israel has also signed with the US company, for exploration and discovery agreement, where it discovered one of the largest natural gas fields in the Mediterranean Sea, a giant Vitan field of gas, and the largest in the history of the company “Noble Energy”.
It is located under Israeli sovereignty, and the gas reserves of it is estimated to more than 16 trillion cubic feet square, Israel has great economic hopes to exploit and export its gas to neighboring countries including Egypt, Jordan and then Turkey.
And the Vitan Marine gas field is located at a distance of about 190 kilometers north of the city of Damietta, northeast of Egypt, in the southern slope for Mrine”Mount Eratosthenes” in the east of Mediterranean sea, between Cyprus and Egypt in an area supposedly economic exclusive to Egypt, while the field is in a distance 233 kilometers west of Haifa at a depth of 1,500 meters, as the region is one of the richest natural gas regions in the world.
After announcing the discovery of a field of Vitan Israel considered it as the beginning of the road to transformation from importer to gas exporter, and Israeli Minister of Energy then Yuval Steintsan spoke about “vision when Israel is a major player in the energy market , ” considering natural gas , ” the main driver of the efforts of the drafting of a rapprochement between Israel relations and Turkey, “On September 13 2013, the company” Trcas ” the Turkish branch of the Shell company came with a proposal to extend a natural gas pipeline from the Vitan field to the south of Turkey, at a cost of $ 2.5 billion, and can transport 16 billion cubic meters of gas.
It is noteworthy that the “field of Vitan” contains a contaminated gas of hydrogen Bslved, which would have to be removed at an additional cost , “which will increase the extracted gas from the field , and is difficult to market it , and doubts are around the map of the US Geological Survey , which goes to a difference in numbers, in the site of Vitan gas field making it farther from Egypt, as well as a gas field of Tamar appears in a site farther from Lebanon .
Samson field: It is one of the important fields that are located in the Mediterranean basin and began to develop it in 2012 in favor of Israel, and its reserves of gas estimated by 3.5 trillion cubic meters, and the field is located just 237 km from Haifa, 114 km from Damietta, which confirms that it is located within the exclusive economic boundaries of Egypt.
The reserves of three fields (for Vitan, Aphrodite, Samson) exceed 36 trillion cubic feet of gas, valued at $ 240 billion.
According to the given data and studies indicate that Israel and Cyprus are beneficial of those fields, while Egypt is heading to import gas from Israel, after Israel was relying on Egypt to 43% to meet its gas needs.
Israel aims of exploration operations to achieve economic , local and political regional , international strategic goals , which is of great financial importance due to the achievements of the huge financial profits to supply the Israeli treasury and contribute to economic growth, for example , the agreement with Egypt alone provides the $ 700 million to the treasury of Israel.
And European countries encourage Israel to exploit the enormous wealth, to reduce its dependence on Russian gas, which stopped the supply of Europe because of the Ukrainian crisis, and here we find that Israel after the discovery of gas, itself offers an alternative to Russia, especially the energy bridge, which runs between the Eastern Mediterranean and the European Union depends about 25% on the source of gas from Russia.
The other side of the conflict: the agreement between Israel and Cyprus in 2010 to share the discovery of a disputed sea area with Turkey, and Israel expanded its exploration to the Lebanese economic zone.
Lebanon:
oil and gas file in the maritime border area disputed between Israel and Lebanon is a permanent tension, noting that the Lebanese specialists estimated that the size of the Lebanese navy reserves of gas, 96 trillion cubic feet, and oil at 865 million barrels, but the political conflicts between rival Lebanese parties have prevented the start in the process of exploration and development sector.
And that the dividing line between Lebanon and Israel is located within the disputed area, and this line contains beneath a huge reserve of oil and gas, which is likely that there will be fighting or conflict around it, if Lebanon did not receive its share of gas as estimated.
For its part, Lebanon submitted a protest to the United Nations regarding the encroachment of Israel and Cyprus, regarding its exclusive economic zone, which led to the loss of Lebanon a large area of gas, and also Israel’s dependence on vertical drilling rather than horizontal, leading to the entry to the depth of the Lebanese territory.
The Lebanese internal problems and sectarian conflicts make Lebanon to lose more, which led to Israel to take advantage of the Lebanese lax, and to get its vast gas wealth.
But according to the website Globes “Israel”, Israel directed at the request of the United States and the United Nations to put pressure on the Lebanese government to change the tender prepared for gas exploration in five watermark “blocks” .
“Globus” explained that “three of those blocks located on the maritime borders of Israel and are subject to a water area disputed between the two countries in a region with an area of 800 square kilometers,” and Lebanon estimates that its territorial waters contain 850 million barrels of oil, and at least 2.700 billion meters cubic of natural gas, which is the amount equivalent to the Israeli capability including fields discovered recently.
A professor at the American University and the Lebanese economist expert Kamil Waznah considered that Israel is seeking to escalate, in order to prevent Lebanon from obtaining investments in its territory and sovereign Blocks and to push the big companies which intend to invest in the Lebanese oil to withdraw their investments.
Lebanon had carried out preliminary procedures for the classification of oil and gas companies in 2013, that 46 companies out of 52 had managed to pass it.
According to the Israeli site (Globus), Lebanon estimates on the amount of oil and gas owned in its exclusive waters “equal to the estimated quantity in the Israeli economic exclusive waters, including wells discovered previously.”
Israel fears, which find it difficult to bring investors as a result of the Palestinian conflict, the completion of the Lebanese party.
At a gas conference recently held in Nicosia, Cyprus, the oil resources director at the Lebanese Ministry of Energy, Sam Edmund indicated to the existence of great opportunities to find oil and gas in the blocks offered for tender.
He said that Israel is going to take unilateral steps under the name of the Maritime Areas Act “which defines the maritime regions of Israel, to include the disputed region”, and Kamil Waznah expressed in his remarks about his “fears of Israel’s intentions of the robbery against Lebanon gas.”
Tamar gas field: it was discovered in 2009. It is located 90 miles west of Haifa, and is 35 km within the Lebanese Economic Zone, which is one of the important fields of natural gas in the Mediterranean Sea, and is located within the disputed area between Lebanon and Israel, which controls it.
The work in it was began in March 2013 to transfer gas to Ashkelon, and within the agreement transferred from Ashkelon to Egypt, despite demands from Lebanon of its right for the field , and according to its saying we find here the demarcation of the border is overlapping and meshed in the East Mediterranean region, due to the geographical overlapping .
Blue Line agreement: Blue Line is the withdrawal line established by the United Nations in 2000, between Lebanon and Israel in order to verify the Israeli withdrawal.
Lebanon declared its respect for Resolution 1701, and this resolution stresses, especially in the fourth and eighth paragraphs of it, on full respect for the Blue Line, so any breach of this line is a breach of resolution 1701, as well as it could cause security incidents.
However, Israel has recorded its reservation that the border l is represented by a technical line which leaves several enclaves Israel claims of ownership of the north of border line, and the depth of each pocket ranges from10 to 100 meters.
Turkey: economic interests are intertwined and complicated because it is related to energy, which is the economic lifeline of all States.
Turkey even though it was far spatially from Lebanon and Israel, but it is interjecting in the conflict because of the protection of the Turks in northern Cyprus, while Greece is defending for the Greeks in southern Cyprus.
Therefore, Turkey has the right to preserve the interests of the Turkish Cypriots, as they are representatives of the Convention for the demarcation of the border; it requires the agreement between the Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots to the demarcation of the border.
A difference is shown in the demarcation of the border between Egypt and Cyprus on the one hand, and the lack of demarcation of the border between Egypt and Israel, this means that the Israeli water is separating between Egypt and Cyprus; then the demarcation requires the consent of all parties concerned, and there is no right to Israel to extend its borders without the consent of Egypt, because without it is chaos and will open a door for differences in the future, and the difference may be developed into a military confrontations.
Palestine: the British company at the request of the Palestinian government has conducted an exploration next to the coast of Gaza in 2005, but Israel has prevented Palestinians from benefiting from the gas reserves located in their economic exclusive water, although it withdrew from Gaza, but did not withdraw from Palestinian territorial waters thus, according to international law Israel is a violation of the law.
Syria: the discovery of gas in Syria led to make it from countries with enormous reserves of gas in the region, as Homs is a huge economic area, containing a vital hub in the global gas market.
The Syrian reserves of gas and oil are concentrated in the Syrian Desert and the coast by 83%, while there in the Syrian island only 12%.
According to recent studies that the Syrian wells in the island will start to be depleted in 2022, while the rest of the fields in the desert and the coast, if the exploitation began in 2018, it would remain until 2051 at least.
Syria in 2008 in gas reserves was ranked 43 globally at 240.7 billion cubic meters, depending on the location List of countries by natural gas proven reserves. While it was ranked 31 of oil reserves.
But in 2017; the Syrian gas reserves in the Palmyra area and the continent and the coast of Tartous and Banias, is estimated the largest among the six countries, and this makes Syria, if the extraction of this gas is taken place , ” a third country of gas exporter in the world,” and it will occupies a center that it may compete with Qatar, and Russia and Iran, the Ferrell Center for the Studies estimated the Syrian gas reserves by 28.5 billion cubic meters.
However, there are three medium – sized gas fields north of Palmyra, enough to supply Syria with full electric power, 24 hours a day, for 19 years.
And that the volume of gas discovered in Israel, equivalent to 11% of it in Syria, Lebanon 8%, and 31% in Egypt.
There are facts relating to the conflict on the gas in the Middle East can not be overlooked, namely:
– the insistence of Moscow to defend Syria, not to secure the outlet on the Mediterranean sea only, but most important is the gas and oil, and the establishment of a permanent naval base in Tartus to take advantage of the gas Sea there noting that Russia says it is ready to fight a global war for gas, and the Syrian regime does not abandon Moscow because it prolongs the life of the rule of Bashar, even if this was at the expense of killing the entire Syrian people.
– the ambitions of Iran in Syria is much more than Russia, in addition to the continued expansion of Iran and its ideology of terrorism, the British newspaper The Guardian in a report said that Iran has a strategic project to secure a land corridor runs through Iraq in the border point between the two countries, then north – eastern Syria to Aleppo and Homs and ends with the port of Latakia on the sea Mediterranean sea.
And that the spread of Iran ‘s sectarian militias to put plans to the implementation of the corridor project to arrive the Al-Riqa in Syria , through the west of Mosul, which is a basis in achieving Iran ‘s goal to reach the Mediterranean Sea.
The report added that Iran is trying to consolidate its feet after more than 12 years of conflict in Iraq and its participation in the fierce civil war in Syria, has become closer than ever to secure a land corridor and consolidates itself in the region, and is likely the Iranian presence to expands to achieve its expansionist ambitions in the region, and a European official closely related to developments in Iraq and Syria over the past years said , the Iranians have been working aggressively to implement their project of expansion, adding that they will be able to transfer manpower and supplies between Tehran and the Mediterranean Sea at any time they please via secure routes guarded by loyalists to them or others by proxy, the report adds that the corridor , which Tehran has been ripped it under the eyes of friends and enemies , Iran ‘s opponents did not feel of its gravity only during the recent period.
Qassem Soleimani
It was not a secret the size of the Iranian interference in Syria , along with Bashar al- Assad ‘s regime in the face of the Syrian people and their revolution by money or weapons or even by moral support through the official Iranian statements expressing its full standing at his side, which was revealed by dozens of Western reports , especially those some of which talked about the Iranian daily aircrafts arriving at Damascus airport, carrying thousands of tons of weapons and ammunition and Iranian military experts.
The report added , published by the Guardian that the corridor plan was coordinated between senior government officials and security personnel in Tehran, Baghdad and Damascus , led by the commander of the Iranian brigade of Quds , General Qassem Soleimani, who has been managing Iran war in Iraq and Syria, and that the corridor plan , including demographic changes completed its implementation of central Iraq and still under implementation in Syria, and relies heavily on the support of a series of allies who are not necessarily aware of the whole project , but they have an interest in it.
The report cited the details of the corridor, which starts from the Iraqi city of Baquba, Diyala province, 60 km north of the center of Baghdad, and Baquba , the corridor passes to the north – west direction to Sharqat of Salahuddin province.
After Sharqat, the report said Tal Afar , Sinjar and Rabia border crossing between Iraq and Syria , the corridor runs next to Qamishli and Ain Arab (Kobani) and Afrin, and then Aleppo, the largest point between the Iranian border with Iraq, and to the Mediterranean in which Tehran focused its higher energies.
– that Iran’s goal of supporting the Assad regime and provide tens of billions a year to keep his regime alive, despite the difficult economic situation experienced by sanctions and international isolation, but “Iran has a national Expansive project and wants to impose its regional influence with international recognition, and its tools in it are the file of nuclear program, and the Assad regime, Hezbollah and the Houthis. They use all of these tools to enforce and expand this influence, and thus it considered it as an investment to reap its fruits in the future. ”
– Iran is engaging today in a fateful war in Syria, and expresses its readiness to spare no effort to win it, and the ambitions of Iran in Syria were not born of the moment, but they are as old as the rule of the Assad family of Syria, and the one who knows Syria before the revolution, he will be aware of Iran’s attempts to control all basic joints in Syria , and it entered through the “religious community” where it set up dozens of Shiite mosques in Syria, especially in the northeastern region of Syria (Raqqa, Deir al-Zour), then the matter was developed to spread the cultural centers to teach the Persian language, and finally tried to tempt people with money in exchange for loyalty to Iran.
-The Syrian Revolution has limited the spread of Iranian control, and here we understand why Iran is fighting the Syrian revolution, with all its power, so it is not surprised that Iran is providing billions of dollars a year to keep al-Assad who is a “guarantor of its interests in Syria” and fight anyone who is fighting him, in short , Iran do not see Syria only an Iranian province as it was said by more than Iranian official and do not want to lose it. ”
Shatha Khalil
Translated by: Mudhaffar al-Kusairi
Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies