Abstract:
The collapse of the strategic oil relationship between the United States and the Middle East suppliers brought the Gulf of Guinea and the Niger Delta into a high profile of global energy partnership. As the United States and other Western nations continue to move away from reliance on Middle East oil, Africa in particular Nigeria Niger Delta has assumed a new degree of importance in international affairs. However, the instability of Niger Delta has prompted concern amongst Western governments that their energy security may be in jeopardy. An emerging body of literature argues that energy security has become 'militarized', as Western governments arm African regimes to secure oil supplies, driving 'resource wars' in the process. The study seeks to investigate Americas’ strategic oil interest in the Gulf of Guinea and the Africa High Command. The thrust of the study however, is to investigate if there is any relationship between the Niger Delta crisis and Americas’ positioning of the Africa High Command in the Gulf of Guinea. While observing at the same time that energy security and 'resource wars' have lead to conflict. This investigation will explore more thoroughly the issues surrounding the pursuit of energy security and the establishment of AFRICOM by the United States and resource based conflicts in the Niger delta. The Dependency theory will be relied upon as our explanatory framework. The study will make use of the secondary sources of data collection such as textbooks, journals, newspapers, magazines, conference proceedings, official documents and Internet resources. Giving a qualitative description to quantitative information brings simplicity and coherence to our work and this is supported by Ex-post facto design as our research design for controlling the variables under study, in addition to the secondary data where necessary in order to ensure the validity and reliability of our findings. Based on the findings and conclusions of the study, practical recommendations and measures was adopted in order to ensure the strengthening of the security institutions and policing of the Nigerian state to ensure strict adherence to global best practices in security development of a sound National Security strategy. It is therefore imperative that American oil companies involved in exploration and production activities should assist the country in developing strategies that would compel and encourage meaningful use of oil revenue toward regional growth and the building of sustainable political and economic institutions that would benefit all.
