New Delhi, June 15 -- Are India and Pakistan headed for an oil war in the desert terrain of Sindh and Rajasthan in the foreseeable future? As both the United States and China compete for Pakistan's explorations near the Indian border, could this region, close to the Gulf conflict zone, also get impacted?

While the Chinese came in first, Pakistan's southeastern Sindh province is the latest on the American oil radar. This gets invariably linked to the ongoing Gulf war, where oil is the reason why the US has waged an all-out war against Iran, whatever its other stated goals. And oil is the reason, among many others, why he is wooing Pakistan.

Pakistan has launched a massive offshore energy exploration drive, awarding 23 blocks in the Arabi...