Is our apprehension about Iraq's threat to Arabian oil now sadly anachronistic?
Imagine owning the sole marketing agency for all Saudi Arabian oil.
No one would ever dream a Western nation would be crazy enough to slam Saudi Arabian oil out of the market for two years.
The tanker released about 47,000 tonnes of Arabian light crude oil and between 3,000 and 4,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil.
Saudi Arabian oil was first discovered in commercial quantities at Dammam well No. 7 in 1923 now modern day Dahahran.
Saudi Arabian oil remains vital to American economic interests and the country occupies a central position on the political chessboard in the Middle East.
Continued tension in the Middle East had led some to assume the yen would be vulnerable because of Japan's dependence on Arabian oil.
We are still somewhat dependent on both Arabian and Iranian oil, especially since the Kuwait fields have been temporarily knocked out.
At 11:30 p.m. the same day, the vessel commenced discharging its 114,000 tonnes of mixed Arabian crude oil, which was expected to take about 36 hours.
The United States is dependent on Saudi Arabian oil, and the kingdom is a lynchpin in Middle Eastern affairs.