Oil of Russia

Conclusion

The period comprising the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century was a very complex and extremely contradictory one in Russia’s history. Russia’s successful development as an industrial power was interrupted by World War I, two revolutions, and a Civil War, followed by a period of socialist experimentation. These unique historical events substantially changed the face of the country at a dear price: millions of human lives. The Soviet Union remained a powerful industrial and military power for several decades, and the oil industry has played an extremely important role over its entire history. The close of the 20th century saw the end of the ideological confrontation of the Cold War period, the breakup of the USSR, and its replacement by independent states; these events radically altered the whole world order. Starting in the early 1990s, Russia entered a complex period of economic, social, and political transformation and reorganization of its global and regional strategies.

In late June 2009, the International Energy Conference was held in Vienna; it was organized by the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the government of Austria, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, and the Global Forum on Sustainable Energy. Forum participants thoroughly examined the world’s energy security problems, the use of existing energy resources, and their impact on the social and economic development of the world’s countries. Many speakers emphasized that one of the most important problems of our civilization is ensuring global energy security, i.e., seeking effective ways to create a sustainable and uninterrupted supply of fuel and energy resources to all the world’s countries, and to do so at prices acceptable to both consumers and producers of these resources, with minimal damage to the environment, based on a systemic approach and the joint efforts of the world community. And this is the most important key to sustainable economic and social development and political stability, the one that ultimately determines the necessary conditions of humanity’s life-support system. In the current situation, responsibility for global energy stability is no longer borne only by governments, but also by leading transnational energy companies. They are the ones who can and must become the backbone of further progressive development of the global economy and observance of the principle of sustainable development in the entire world.

At the same time, certain presentations at the Vienna energy forum set this author’s teeth on edge with their ritual phrases about how “energy pressure” from Russia is supposedly growing and how certain “aggressive” actions of Russian companies in Europe must be curbed. Meanwhile, any sensible person today can clearly see that Russia has been a reliable supplier of oil and natural gas to Europe for many decades.

The market economy and democracy are developing in the Russian Federation and will continue to develop—not at all because reformist theoreticians and proponents of the struggle for “virtual” human rights insist on it, but because it is necessary for and beneficial to Russians themselves. Today, Russia is fully capable of influencing the rest of the world with the potential of its ideas, its positive example, moral leadership, objective information, and many other factors. With each passing day, Russia’s role and importance in the world will only grow with the new challenges posed by the contradictory and complex processes of globalization, social and natural disasters, unresolved territorial and ethnic religious disputes, the growth of radicalism in the world, and the threats of international terrorism.

Today, each of us has the right to be proud of the history of the Russian oil industry, which is the story of many generations of Russian oil workers—courageous and purposeful people, passionate about their beloved business, who have made an enormous contribution to creating the country’s fuel base and strengthening Russia’s industrial potential. And now, effective development of the Russian oil and gas industry, the introduction of advanced technology, and the professionalism and experience of industry workers will do much to determine the dynamic, balanced growth of Russia’s economy and the increased quality and level of international cooperation in ensuring global energy security.