Chapter Twelve Selection of pipeline routes from Central Asia to the West seems like a long-term process.
Feasibility is another yardstick.
Because of the Libya-Iran Sanctions Act of 1996, major American oil companies must of necessity avoid Iran. The Unocal Corporation has already discovered pitfalls there. American women are certain to object because of the way the Taleban fundamentalists treat women in Afghanistan, a reminder that medieval customs still exist and get enforced by the Taleban. However, Afghanistan has another use. If this country threatens to negotiate with Afghanistan, negotiations may well convince Russia that Turkmenistan will pursue alternative routes if Moscow goes on damaging its vital economic interests by providing unsatisfactory and unreliable transit facilities for existing gas exports.