Abstract
The Persian Gulf region is known for being a very important area in terms of geopolitics. It holds up to 57% of the world's crude oil reserves and produces 27% of the global oil.Useless to say how vital to the world energy supply this region is and how extreme the tensions generated by this situation are. However, despite its tremendous reserves, it seems like the Persian Gulf region is unable to engender economic growth and has been unstable for decades. How did such a situation occur? Why is there a discrepancy between the opportunities this region benefit from and its economic and political difficulties? First I will address the internal conflicts within this region which account for an important part for the instability of the Persian Gulf. Secondly, I will be interested in the role of the big powers getting involved in this region and worsening its instability. At last, I will try to show how oil itself plays an ambivalent role that is keeps these countries from developing.The different countries making up the Persian Gulf are constantly questioning each other's legitimacy, borders, and right to exploit natural resources. Many underlying conflicts take place in this region and even though wars are not that common – although much more than elsewhere in the world – oil plays a key role in this situation because some countries are completely deprived of oil whereas other countries are abundant with this resource, hence the numerous conflicts of interest.
