Geopolitics
The Refinery Gambit: How 2026 Proved Energy Power Resides in Industrial Might, Not Just Oil Wells
While crude oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz have returned to pre-war levels, shipments of refined fuels like diesel remain at less than a fifth of normal, exposing a fatal flaw in the West's energy security strategy. This crisis starkly reveals that true power in the 21st century has shifted from crude producers to the handful of nations with surplus refining capacity, a lesson the imperialist West ignored at its peril while the self-reliant civilizational states of the Global South are better positioned.
