On November 27, 2024, the Institute for Global Governance Research (GGR) at Hitotsubashi University held the 33rd GGR Brown Bag Lunch Seminar titled “Britain and Japan in the 1973 Middle East Oil Crisis: Washington’s Silent Partners,” featuring Dr. Erika Miller, Assistant Professor at the University of Niigata Prefecture.
Dr. Miller picked up four important points regarding the 1973 oil crisis: 1) the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) had independently raised by 1.5 times the official price of crude oil, which had previously been set by the oil majors; 2) the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) had imposed production restrictions due to the fourth Middle East War; 3) OAPEC ranked consumer countries as the war breaks out; and 4) in conclusion, the price of oil on the market soared. Next, Dr. Miller referred to the 1973 oil crisis and its impact on international relations and the international order from three perspectives: 1) the relationship between the US and Saudi Arabia; 2) the political instability and spread of communism triggered by the price hike; and 3) the diversification of international relations as the European Community distanced itself from the oil order led by the US and Saudi Arabia.
Furthermore, based on newly disclosed documents showing the relationships between the UK, Europe, and the US, and referring to the energy policies of the Japanese government at the time, Dr. Miller pointed out that the UK and Japan strengthened the US’s leadership in the formation of the oil order and the Middle East peace process. Then, she explained that the oil crisis did not cause a split in the West, as the US was able to form a new energy-based order.
During the Q&A session a lively discussion took place, addressing for example the situation of Japan, which suffered losses during the 1973 oil crisis, as other countries were achieving economic growth. A further question explored how we as researchers are able to find new materials. Dr. Miller mentioned the importance of searching for key words and phrases and reading as many related documents as possible.
【Event Report prepared by】
YAN Feng (Master’s student, Graduate School of Law, Hitotsubashi University)
Kenta Kumasaka (Master’s student, School of International Public Policy, Hitotsubashi University)
