Russia-Cuba offshore drilling pact: should America be concerned?

The tense political grudge-triangle between Russia, Cuba and the United States looks to have grown fresh legs. Since Fidel Castro rose to power in 1959 the relationship between Cuba and the US has devolved into a highly sensitive tooing and frowing of policy and propaganda aimed at undermining one another. The occasional nose-poking from Russia has often boosted Cuban egos, putting America's nose out of joint. Even though Cuba lies a mere 160km off the coast of Florida, it has had no diplomatic relations with America since 1961 and whenever they have something to say to each other, they use professional fence-sitter Switzerland as a go-between.

Now, in the light of Russia and Cuba recently entering a multi-million dollar agreement to expand offshore oil and gas production in Cuban water just miles off America shores. The Washington-based Institute for Energy and Research has sounded the alarm about a Russian-Cuban to open drilling. The title of the institute's new release is "Russia, Communist Cuba Advance Offshore Energy Production Miles Off Florida's Coast." Any collaboration between Russia and Cuba will not be popular in Washington. Despite recent efforts from the Obama administration to lessen US-Cuban tensions, America would rather Cuba not have the opportunity to increase their revenue which would allow the dictatorship in place to tighten its grip on its people and deepen its isolation from the world. And the fact that it is Russia, and always will be Russia, that Cuba has entered this agreement with, serves to heighten anxiety in the White House.

According to the Associated Press, "Russia and Cuba signed agreements to search for oil in the Gulf of Mexico, and Moscow extended the island $150 million in credit for construction materials and farm machinery." Such an agreement should really help to shift American energy policy focus. The prescription for action under the title of the Institute for Energy Research's document says, "Efforts Should Send Strong Message to Interior Dept. to Open OCS in Five-Year Plan." The outer continental shelf (OCS) is an area that was closed to oil drilling until the Bush administration opened it last year in a largely symbolic move aimed at driving down the sky-high gasoline prices of the Summer of 2008. Opening the shelf would be largely unpopular with environmentalists with the regions ecology and rare species in mind, but in order for the US to remain competitive in the global energy market the US needs to step up its efforts in oil exploration and drilling. As the research institute's president, Thomas Pyle, says, "if we are to remain competitive in the global market, our government must take its foot off the brake, and expand domestic energy production of all forms, onshore and off."

The US will not be happy with the agreement between Russia and Cuba, and will need to change its energy policy to avoid being beaten to the punch in fight for offshore oil off their own coast.

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