The Geography of Interstate Resource Wars

Francesco Caselli, Massimo Morelli () and Dominic Rohner

The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 2015, vol. 130, issue 1, 267-315

Abstract: We establish a theoretical and empirical framework to assess the role of resource endowments and their geographic location in interstate conflict. The main predictions of the theory are that conflict is more likely when at least one country has natural resources, when the resources in the resource-endowed country are closer to the border, and, in the case where both countries have natural resources, when the resources are located asymmetrically vis-à-vis the border. We test these predictions on a novel data set featuring oilfield distances from bilateral borders. The empirical analysis shows that the presence and location of oil are significant and quantitatively important predictors of interstate conflicts after World War II. JEL Codes: C23, D74, F51, H56, Q34.

Date: 2015
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Related works:
Working Paper: The geography of interstate resource wars (2015)
Working Paper: The Geography of Inter-State Resource Wars (2013)
Working Paper: The Geography of Inter-State Resource Wars (2013)
Working Paper: The geography of inter-state resource wars (2013)
Working Paper: The Geography of Inter-State Resource Wars (2013)
Working Paper: The Geography of Inter-State Resource Wars (2013)
Working Paper: The Geography of Inter-State Resource Wars (2013)
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