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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

Has fracking eliminated US dependency on Middle Eastern oil?

By Austin Tannenbaum
NO

U.S. oil imports from the Middle East have declined by two-thirds over the last twenty years. Last year the U.S. relied on the region for 10.5% of its imports.

The decline, accelerated by a boom in the use of hydraulic fracturing over the last ten years, has reduced the country's vulnerability to the kind of supply disruption experienced in the mid-1970s with an Arab-led embargo on oil exports. But the world economy, and many other U.S. allies, remain dependent on stable supplies from the region. Europe gets about 20% of its oil from the region.

Those ties and other factors—terrorism, Iran's nuclear ambitions and American commitments to Israel's security—have kept the region a focus of concern for policy makers despite reduced direct U.S. dependence on its oil supplies.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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