We just witnessed what happened to Saddam when he switched to the euro. Below is the crucial "detail" that you will never hear about in the US media...
**************
http://www.thedossier.ukonline.co.uk/Web%20Pages/FINANCIAL%20TIMES_Iraq%20returns%20to%20international%20oil%20market.htm'Iraq returns to international oil market' (June 5, 2003)
"The tender, for which bids are due by June 10, switches the transaction back to dollars - the international currency of oil sales - despite the greenback's recent fall in value. Saddam Hussein in 2000 insisted Iraq's oil be sold for euros, a political move, but one that improved Iraq's recent earnings thanks to the rise in the value of the euro against the dollar."
**********
For those who want to understand 21st century US foreign policy/geostrategy - you simply need to understand 2 key concepts:
1) Maintaining US dollar supremacy (ie. do not let the euro become an alternative international oil transaction currency). The euro is the prime threat to dollar hegemony, and the US will use either overt force (Iraq) or covert force (Venezuela) to maintain dollar monopoly for oil transactions. Period. Of course the "war on terror" provides better cover...
2) Gaining geostrategic control over the world's last remaining hydrocrabon deposits before the onset of the imminent geological phenomenon known as "Peak Oil." According to respected geologists this will occur around 2010. Remember, life is nothing more than a competition for energy - and oil is the lifeblood of all indistrialized societies for the past 100 years.
BTW, had Dr. Blix and the UN weapon inspectors been allowed to complete their inspections and declare Iraq free of WMD this year - guess what? The 1991 UN sanctions would have been lifted, and Saddam's agreements with France, Russia and China to lease Iraq's large unexplored oil fields would have become effective. This scenario would also solidified the euro's position as an alternative oil transaction currency. So, given the above 2 US geostrategic goals, we have a fradulent "war on terror" in the middle east to overthrow Saddam, and some covert operations in Venezuela and elsewhere...
Once you understand the above 2 concepts, you can begin to understand about 90% of US foreign policies. Cheers.