Iran War and the Petrodollar

The global order has long rested on two pillars. The first is the taboo of territorial acquisition by military force, enshrined in the UN Charter following an apocalyptic World War. Second is the post-Bretton Woods petrodollar system, where oil flows from the Middle East are priced exclusively in US dollars, enabling a system of global trade that runs through US financial circuits. The first pillar has already been toppled, as testified by recent events in Ukraine, Armenia, northern Syria, and perhaps soon Afghanistan and southern Lebanon. And now with the advent of the Iran war, the second pillar – the…