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Lugar: Energy Reform and the Military

1/28/2010

By Dick Lugar and Paul J. Kern
Special to The Courier-Journal
As our troops advanced toward Baghdad in the spring of 2003, we faced an obstacle nearly as difficult as the enemy. It was getting fuel when and where we needed it across large stretches of desert, where the supply convoys were constantly under threat of attack. The security measures necessary to defend this vast space so slowed American movements and reduced options available to the Army and Marines that one commander pleaded, “Unleash us from the tether of fuel.” This situation plays out still in Afghanistan, where 3-mile-long fuel convoys are exposed as they crawl along dangerous mountain routes.
Militarily, our inefficient use and overreliance on oil adds significantly to the risks already assumed by our troops. It reduces combat effectiveness and exacts a huge price tag — in dollars and lives. It puts our troops — more directly and more often — in harm's way.
Lengthy fuel convoys traversing hotly contested territory are attractive targets for enemy forces. As in-theater energy demand increases, more assets must be diverted to protect fuel convoys rather than to directly engage enemy combatants. Today, in Iraq and Afghanistan, the pace of military operations, the size of the force and its effectiveness are to an important degree controlled by our ability to get fuel when and where it's needed.
One might be tempted to say this is just a logistics problem. As ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the former commanding general of U.S. Army Materiel Command, we know otherwise.
Beyond the military's own fuel needs, our nation consumes more oil than any other country. We rely on our armed forces, already stretched thin with wars on two fronts, to ensure the flow of that oil by protecting sea lanes and maintaining a high level of forward presence. The October 2000 terrorist attack on the USS Cole , while on a stop in Yemen, was a tragic reminder of the convergence of oil, instability, and terrorism.
In 2008, the U.S. sent $453.3 billion overseas to pay for oil — much of it to countries hostile to our interests. This dependence weakens our leverage internationally and limits our diplomatic options.
With only a tiny fraction of global oil reserves we simply will not have enough oil in this country to free us from the stranglehold of those who do, even as we pursue aggressive efforts to develop more domestic supply.
Powering America's Defense: Energy and the Risks to National Security, a recent report from the CNA Military Advisory Board (MAB) composed of top-ranking retired military leaders, came to the sobering conclusion that our dependence on all fossil fuels, not just oil, puts us at risk — economically, militarily and diplomatically. “The nation's current energy posture is a serious and urgent threat to national security,” the report found.
The MAB concluded that we must transform the way our country produces and uses energy. Diversifying our energy sources away from fossil fuels is critical to our future energy security and our environment. This will inevitably mean moving to more renewable sources of energy and greater efficiency.
As the largest single user of energy in the country, the Defense Department can play a leadership role. Just as it helped lay the foundation for groundbreaking technologies like the Internet, the Pentagon — with the help of American industry — is acting as an early adopter and test bed for energy technologies. Recently, the Navy successfully tested a jet biofuel, which would have major implications for aviation. The Defense Department's tremendous purchasing power can drive down the cost for future commercial opportunities in ways civilian organizations cannot.
For instance, the Naval Surface Warfare Center Crane, with more than 1,900 scientists, engineers and technicians and a total work force of nearly 3,700, is working to enhance the effectiveness and safety of lithium-ion batteries for Navy ships. This and similar technologies will un-tether our military, make a stronger fighting force and help protect lives. This is the type of research that can be put to use commercially.
Maintaining American military and diplomatic strength means moving America to a clean energy future. The lessons from two wars, a global recession, and the success of early adoption for renewable energy suggest we must change our ways. We can be the leader of a global energy revolution.
Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., is ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Gen. Paul J. Kern is the former commanding general of U.S. Army Materiel Command.
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Lugar, Cardin: U.S. should follow Norway’s transparency example
 
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Dick Lugar (R-IN) and Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) commended the government of Norway for being the first OECD country to publicly disclose its oil and gas revenues as a member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.  Lugar and Cardin called for the U.S., which is currently a supporting country, to become an implementing member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) as a step toward renewed U.S. leadership on transparency in the management of oil, natural gas, and minerals.
 
“I congratulate the government of Norway on this important step in demonstrating good governance of its natural resources to the Norwegian people,” Lugar said. “Transparency should be the global norm.  Americans would also benefit from increased transparency in our domestic oil resources.  Demonstrating U.S. leadership by joining the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative bolsters our efforts to combat corruption, strengthen energy security, and encourage economic development in natural resource producing nations.”
 
Senator Cardin called on the Obama Administration to follow Norway’s lead in revenue transparency, saying, “The transparency framework of EITI is a global model not just for developing countries, but for wealthier countries as well.  We are not immune to corruption in this country, so the more tools we have to publicize information about our natural resources the more transparent and accountable we become to the American people.” 
 
On September 23, 2009, Lugar and Cardin, joined by Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Russ Feingold (D-WI), introduced the Energy Security Through Transparency Act (S.1700) to combat the “resource curse.”  In addition to strengthening international disclosure efforts, that legislation expresses the sense of Congress that the Administration should undertake to become an implementing country of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (we are currently a supporting country);  and commits the Department of Interior to disclosing extractive payments received for resources derived from federal lands.
 
Learn more about the “resource curse” by reading the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Minority Staff report at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=110_cong_senate_committee_prints&docid=f:44727.pdf.
 
Watch a video from the U.S. Helsinki Commission on the need for energy transparency and energy security at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvZZ5uQ42Co.
 
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Cardin, Lugar Support Iraq’s Commitment to Transparency in Oil and Gas Industry
 
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD) and Richard G. Lugar (R-IN), both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, expressed today their strong support for Iraq’s commitment to greater transparency in its oil and gas industry.
 
Iraq formally announced Monday its intention to become a candidate country in the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) following years of growing interest in the initiative from Iraqi leaders. EITI is an international coalition of governments, companies and civil society that promotes good governance through the publication of oil, gas and mining revenues.
 
“This is a significant step toward a greater future for Iraq,” said Cardin, who has promoted EITI as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission). “The EITI process has proven to strengthen civil society and increase revenue transparency. By joining this coalition, Iraq’s leaders are committing to transparency that will empower citizens to hold their government accountable.”
 
“Corruption remains a significant problem in Iraq,” said Lugar, the Ranking Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee. “As oil and gas is the single largest source of revenue for Iraq, it is important that the revenues generated benefit the people of Iraq, and not just a handful of businessmen and officials. By committing to implement EITI, Iraq is creating a foundation for good governance and accountability in a sector critical to Iraq’s future stability.”
 
Senators Lugar and Cardin, along with eight other co-sponsors, recently introduced the Energy Security Through Transparency Act (S. 1700), a bipartisan bill that aims to increase transparency through public disclosure of oil, gas and mining payments and encourages U.S. participation in EITI.

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