Undivided Sudan’s Oil engagement with Malaysia
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Abstract
The expansion of Undivided Sudan’s oil sector coincides with rising Asian interest in the oil fields of Africa that is located in the extended supply zone of the present world oil regime. Asian powers have over the years acquired extensive knowledge and experience in domestic oil production; yet that failed to meet their constantly rising energy demands triggered by economic globalsiation. The increasing external dependence pushed these countries to enter into transnational oil ventures. The 9/11 terrorist attack has further propelled the oil-seeking countries to diversify their supply lines by drifting away from West Asia and getting closer to Africa. Asian quest for African equity oil has consequently concretised the Afro-Asian interdependence that has evolved in the post cold war economic world order in terms of trade and investment partnership. As an extension of such economic complemtarity, the current regime in Undivided Sudan has diversified the pattern of its transnational production linkage through consolidation of multiple Asian participations in its oil sector. The shift that Undivided Sudan’s foreign oil policy behavior has undergone is due to the withdrawal of major Western oil firms, which have initiated the exploration and production activity in its oil field. The underlying rationale for such approach, therefore, lies in the intents to ensure that Undivided Sudan’s oil production remains less dependent on the partnership with West, and at the same time to avoid a situation where any single Asian player does monopolise its oil sector. As a result, Asian orientation has become the hallmark of the transnational partnership that Undivided Sudan is currently forging for its oil production. This article devotes to conceptualise the world diplomatic system. The conceptualisation of diplomatic system is followed by conception of the current world oil regime within the wider energy discourse. This article begins with energy supply-demand outlook in Asia that constitutes the extended demand zone of the world energy regime. It subsequently examines Undivided Sudan’s oil engagement with another Asian partner that is Malaysia.