Deadly Combat over Natural Resources: Gems, Petroleum, Drugs, and the Severity of Armed Civil Conflict

• Published in: The Journal of conflict resolution Vol. 53; no. 1; pp. 50 - 71
• Main Author: Lujala, Päivi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA Sage Publications 01.02.2009; SAGE Publications; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Armed conflict; Civil War; Civil wars; Conflict; Conflict resolution; Cultivation; Datasets; Diamonds; Dynamics; Ethnic conflict; Fossil fuels; Gas; Gem stones; Geographic location; Hydrocarbons; Incentives; Mineral Resources; Mining; Mining industry; Natural resources; Oil; Petroleum; Petroleum production; Production; Production increases; Resources; Severity; Studies; War conflict; Warfare; Wars; diamonds; oil; civil war; natural resources; conflict severity
• ISSN: 0022-0027; 1552-8766
• DOI: 10.1177/0022002708327644

This article empirically examines how natural resources affect the severity of armed civil conflict. It finds that drug cultivation in the conflict area is associated with less severe conflicts but that gemstone mining and oil and gas in the conflict zone production increase the severity of conflicts. Most severe are secessionist conflicts in regions with hydrocarbon production. Interestingly, oil and gas production outside the conflict zones is related to less severe conflicts. Measured at the country level, none of the resource variables has an effect on conflict severity. These results have four implications. First, availability of natural resources affects the severity of armed civil conflict. Second, the location of resourcs is crucial to their impact on conflict. Third, the type of reasource matters. Above all, it seems that natural resources affect conflict severity by altering incentives for both the rebel group and the state