In a Nutshell

An oil shortage brought the US to its knees and caused shockwaves around the world

THE OIL CRISIS

What was the oil crisis?

The 12-year period between 1967 and 1979 saw a series of energy crises, the most significant of which arose in 1973, when the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) implemented what it referred to as “oil diplomacy”. This effectively prohibited the US (and the Netherlands) from buying oil from OPEC.

What was behind the embargo?

In early October 1973, on the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, the combined forces of Egypt and Syria launched an attack against Israel in an attempt to win back territory lost during the third Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Supported by Soviet arms, the Egyptian-Syrian forces looked set to triumph, until the US, under President Richard Nixon, stepped in to aid Israeli troops with military support.