In 2000 Saddam Hussein attempted to stop accepting US dollars for oil transactions in favour of the euro, threatening demand for and the liquidity value of the dollar. After the Bush regime had invaded Iraq and ousted the dictator, they quietly went about converting Iraq’s oil currency back to the dollar.
Conspiracies abound then as Iran announced that it would replace the dollar with the euro in its foreign trade transactions. According to the Iranian finance minister this is because of “hostile policies” against Iran by the US government, though some cynics may argue that this action will provoke even more hostile behaviour by Washington. At the very least, we can expect the already weakened dollar to drop further, and so imperil America’s position as the global economic leader.