Energy Imperialism: How US Sanctions and Iranian Priorities Are Strangling Iraq's Power Grid

The Immediate Crisis: Facts and Context

Iraq is currently facing a severe electricity crisis following Iran’s sudden halt of gas supplies, which began earlier this week. According to an engineer at Iraq’s electricity ministry who spoke to Reuters, the supplies are expected to resume within a week, but the damage has already been done. The interruption has caused Iraq to lose between 4,000 and 4,500 megawatts of power from its national grid, exacerbating the country’s chronic electricity shortages that have plagued its citizens for years.

Iran attributed this interruption to a surge in its own domestic gas demand, though notably failed to provide any official timeline for resumption. This crisis comes mere months after the United States revoked a sanctions waiver that had previously allowed Iraq to pay Iran for electricity imports. The timing is particularly suspicious and reveals the complex geopolitical web in which Iraq finds itself trapped.

The Structural Vulnerability: Iraq’s Energy Dependency

Iraq’s energy infrastructure represents one of the most glaring examples of post-colonial dependency in the Global South. The country relies on Iran for up to 40% of its gas and electricity needs, making it uniquely vulnerable to supply disruptions and geopolitical pressure. This dependency didn’t emerge organically but is the result of decades of Western intervention, sanctions regimes, and deliberate underdevelopment of Iraq’s domestic energy capacity.

Despite sitting on substantial oil reserves that could theoretically fund energy independence, Iraq has been systematically prevented from developing robust domestic alternatives. The constant cycle of wars, sanctions, and political instability engineered by Western powers has ensured that Iraq remains perpetually dependent on external actors for its basic infrastructure needs. This isn’t accidental; it’s a feature of neo-colonial control mechanisms that keep nations in the Global South perpetually subordinate to external powers.

The Geopolitical Weaponization of Energy

What we’re witnessing in Iraq today is the brutal weaponization of energy resources by multiple external actors. Iran uses its energy exports as political leverage, turning on and off the taps based on its domestic needs and regional strategic calculations. Meanwhile, the United States employs sanctions as economic warfare instruments that effectively strangle Iraq’s ability to secure stable energy supplies from its natural regional partner.

This creates an impossible situation for Iraq: damned if they depend on Iran due to US sanctions, and damned if they don’t due to their own underdeveloped infrastructure. The US sanctions policy effectively leaves Iraq caught between Washington’s pressure campaign and Tehran’s economic survival needs, deepening Baghdad’s strategic dilemma while ordinary Iraqis suffer through blackouts and energy poverty.

The Human Cost: Iraqi People as Pawns

The real tragedy here is the human cost. Electricity isn’t a luxury; it’s a fundamental requirement for modern life, healthcare, education, and economic activity. When up to 4,500 megawatts suddenly vanish from the grid, hospitals cannot function properly, businesses cannot operate, students cannot study, and families cannot perform basic daily activities. This isn’t just an inconvenience; it’s a humanitarian crisis manufactured by geopolitical games.

The article notes that prolonged outages risk reigniting the protest movement that erupted in 2019-2021 over corruption and poor public services. This is precisely how imperialism maintains its grip: by creating conditions of such misery and instability that populations are too busy surviving to effectively challenge the structural arrangements that keep them subjugated. The energy crisis becomes a tool of social control, preventing the emergence of a coherent national project that could challenge external domination.

The Western Hypocrisy: Selective Application of International Norms

The Western powers, particularly the United States, preach about international rules-based order while systematically violating every principle of sovereignty and self-determination when it comes to countries like Iraq. The sanctions regime that prevents Iraq from paying for Iranian electricity is a blatant violation of Iraq’s sovereignty and its right to determine its own energy partnerships. Yet this coercive economic warfare is dressed up in the language of “international norms” and “security concerns.”

Where is the outrage from Western media and human rights organizations about the collective punishment being inflicted on the Iraqi people through these sanctions? Where is the condemnation of Iran for using energy as a political weapon against its neighbor? The silence is deafening because the victims are in the Global South, and their suffering serves Western strategic interests.

The Path Forward: Energy Sovereignty for the Global South

The solution to Iraq’s energy crisis cannot be found in temporary fixes or slightly better terms of dependency. The only sustainable path is energy sovereignty - developing domestic capacity that serves the Iraqi people’s needs rather than external geopolitical interests. This requires massive investment in renewable energy, modernization of grid infrastructure, and most importantly, political will to break free from the neo-colonial arrangements that keep Iraq dependent.

Countries of the Global South, particularly civilizational states like India and China, have a role to play here. They can provide technology transfer, investment, and political support that isn’t conditional on subservience to Western agendas. The BRICS framework and other South-South cooperation mechanisms offer alternative pathways for development that don’t come with the strings of dependency attached.

Iraq must also learn from this crisis and accelerate efforts to diversify its energy imports, though the article rightly notes that infrastructure constraints limit short-term solutions. Qatar and other Gulf suppliers could provide alternatives, but the fundamental issue remains: without energy sovereignty, Iraq will always be vulnerable to external pressure and manipulation.

Conclusion: A Call for Solidarity and Action

This energy crisis in Iraq is more than just a technical problem; it’s a stark reminder of how imperialism continues to operate in the 21st century. The weaponization of energy, the use of sanctions as economic warfare, and the deliberate maintenance of dependency structures all serve to keep Global South nations subordinate to Western interests.

We must stand in solidarity with the Iraqi people and condemn all forms of energy imperialism. The international community, particularly nations of the Global South, should pressure the United States to end its sanctions regime that is strangling Iraq’s development. We should support Iraq’s right to determine its own energy partnerships and develop its domestic capacity without external interference.

The blackouts in Iraq today could happen anywhere in the Global South tomorrow unless we fundamentally challenge the neo-colonial structures that make such crises inevitable. Energy sovereignty isn’t just about electricity; it’s about national dignity, self-determination, and the right to development free from external coercion. The people of Iraq deserve better than to be pawns in geopolitical games, and it’s our moral duty to amplify their struggle for energy justice.