G-20 Nations Will Isolate the U.S. — Until They Want U.S. Energy

World leaders at the recent G-20 summit presented a mostly unified front against President Donald Trump in retaliation for his decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement. The opposition to Trump’s policies — framed as the “G19 vs the US” and formulated in the name of saving Earth from supposed catastrophic climate change — is likely to persist, too, until, that is, these nations wish to benefit from them by purchasing American oil, coal, and natural gas. With the exception of a few countries — namely Canada, Indonesia, Russia, and Saudi Arabia — most of the G-20 nations and other Western countries are dependent on energy imports. For example, none of the European Union’s 28 member states are capable of satisfying their energy needs through domestic production. As a whole, the European Union depends on imports for 88.2 percent of its oil consumption, 67.4 percent of its natural gas consumption, and approximately 45 percent of its coal supplies. The vast majority of these imports are sourced by Russia, which provided 29 percent of the European Union’s oil, 29 percent of its coal, and 37.5 percent of its natural gas consumed in 2014. Although Russia and Saudi Arabia are among the nations in the “G19” who have shown their disapproval of Trump’s policies, they are likely opposed to them because they do not wish to cede market share and profits to the United States, not because they are concerned about climate change. However, the world would undoubtedly benefit if Russia and Saudi Arabia’s energy grip is loosened and the United States’ role in the global energy market is expanded. Given Russian President Vladimir Putin’s history of using energy as a means of flexing the Kremlin’s geopolitical muscles in the past and Saudi Arabia’s role as the ringleader of the manipulative Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), it is not hard to imagine a situation in which most G-20 members would prefer an American alternative for their energy...